Burford Capital (NYSE:BUR) Shares Down 8.4% - What's Next?

Key Points

• Shares of Burford Capital fell 8.4% on Tuesday to as low as $4.61, trading around $4.57 on lighter volume (1.25M shares, down ~60% vs. average) and the stock sits well below its 50‑ and 200‑day moving averages.
• Analysts are mixed: three Buy vs. two Sell with an average rating of Hold and an average price target of $12.00, although recent notes include a Bank of America "buy" and downgrades from Zacks and Weiss while Wedbush cut its target to $4.75.
• Burford posted an earnings miss—EPS of ($0.17) vs. $0.37 expected and revenue $48.8M vs. $168.3M expected—and declared a $0.0625 dividend (ex‑dividend May 22), producing an unusually high yield given the depressed share price.

Burford Capital Limited (NYSE:BUR - Get Free Report)'s share price fell 8.4% on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $4.61 and last traded at $4.5710. 1,254,101 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 60% from the average session volume of 3,137,525 shares. The stock had previously closed at $4.99.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have commented on BUR. Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d+)" rating on shares of Burford Capital in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Bank of America began coverage on shares of Burford Capital in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. They issued a "buy" rating for the company. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Burford Capital from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. Finally, Wedbush restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $4.75 price target (down from $6.00) on shares of Burford Capital in a research note on Monday, March 30th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $12.00.

Burford Capital Trading Down 9.3%

The firm has a market cap of $990.52 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.76 and a beta of 1.29. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $7.20 and its 200 day simple moving average is $8.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 10.93 and a quick ratio of 10.93.

Burford Capital (NYSE:BUR - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 27th. The company reported ($0.17) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.37 by ($0.54). The firm had revenue of $48.78 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $168.30 million. Burford Capital had a return on equity of 1.97% and a net margin of 15.14%. As a group, research analysts expect that Burford Capital Limited will post -0.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Burford Capital Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 12th. Investors of record on Friday, May 22nd will be given a $0.0625 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 22nd. This represents a yield of 147.0%. Burford Capital's payout ratio is 44.44%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Burford Capital

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Signaturefd LLC lifted its position in Burford Capital by 1,687.7% in the fourth quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 2,914 shares of the company's stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 2,751 shares during the last quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Burford Capital in the fourth quarter valued at about $53,000. Strs Ohio purchased a new stake in shares of Burford Capital in the first quarter valued at about $55,000. Insigneo Advisory Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Burford Capital in the fourth quarter valued at about $93,000. Finally, Equitable Holdings Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Burford Capital in the fourth quarter valued at about $94,000.

Burford Capital Company Profile

Burford Capital NYSE: BUR is a leading global finance firm that specializes in litigation and arbitration funding, risk management, and asset recovery. The company provides capital to law firms and corporate clients to finance legal fees and associated costs in commercial disputes. In exchange for funding, Burford shares in any awards or settlements, enabling clients to pursue meritorious claims without bearing upfront legal expenses.

Founded in 2009 by Christopher Bogart, Burford was among the first firms to establish a dedicated litigation finance business.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.