Dun & Bradstreet (NYSE:DNB) Cut to "Hold" at Raymond James

Dun & Bradstreet (NYSE:DNB - Get Free Report) was downgraded by analysts at Raymond James from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report issued on Friday, Marketbeat Ratings reports.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a "hold" rating and issued a $9.15 target price (down from $11.00) on shares of Dun & Bradstreet in a research note on Tuesday, March 25th. Wall Street Zen initiated coverage on shares of Dun & Bradstreet in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. They issued a "hold" rating on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their target price on shares of Dun & Bradstreet from $12.80 to $11.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Dun & Bradstreet in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $11.86.

Dun & Bradstreet Price Performance

Shares of Dun & Bradstreet stock traded down $0.01 on Friday, reaching $9.05. The stock had a trading volume of 14,742,687 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,280,032. Dun & Bradstreet has a 1 year low of $7.78 and a 1 year high of $12.95. The company has a market cap of $4.04 billion, a P/E ratio of -150.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a current ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06. The business's 50 day moving average is $8.93 and its two-hundred day moving average is $10.11.

Dun & Bradstreet (NYSE:DNB - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The business services provider reported $0.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.20 by $0.01. Dun & Bradstreet had a negative net margin of 1.20% and a positive return on equity of 11.29%. The firm had revenue of $579.80 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $578.02 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.20 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Dun & Bradstreet will post 0.96 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Dun & Bradstreet news, Director Chinh Chu sold 10,885,403 shares of Dun & Bradstreet stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.95, for a total transaction of $97,424,356.85. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 23,810 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $213,099.50. This trade represents a 99.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman William P. Foley II sold 2,500,000 shares of Dun & Bradstreet stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.99, for a total transaction of $22,475,000.00. Following the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 8,109,644 shares in the company, valued at $72,905,699.56. This trade represents a 23.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 15,885,403 shares of company stock valued at $142,299,357. 10.44% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Nicola Wealth Management LTD. increased its stake in shares of Dun & Bradstreet by 66.9% in the first quarter. Nicola Wealth Management LTD. now owns 267,000 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $2,387,000 after buying an additional 107,000 shares during the period. Strs Ohio purchased a new position in shares of Dun & Bradstreet in the first quarter worth $1,769,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its stake in shares of Dun & Bradstreet by 2.5% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 820,612 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $7,336,000 after buying an additional 20,076 shares during the period. Woodline Partners LP purchased a new position in shares of Dun & Bradstreet in the first quarter worth $24,291,000. Finally, Aristeia Capital L.L.C. purchased a new position in shares of Dun & Bradstreet in the first quarter worth $263,000. 86.68% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Dun & Bradstreet

Dun & Bradstreet Holdings, Inc engages in providing business decisioning data and analytics solutions. The firm is involved in providing information with its solutions to support its clients with critical business operations. It offers end-to-end solutions to clients in the small business, finance, sales & marketing, third party risk & compliance, and public sectors.