BlackRock Inc. Purchases New Stake in Bread Financial Holdings, Inc. $BFH

Key Points

• BlackRock acquired a 10.12% stake in Bread Financial, purchasing 3.89 million shares valued at approximately $421.3 million. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 99.52% of BFH.
• Bread Financial beat quarterly expectations, reporting $3.55 in EPS versus the $2.74 consensus and revenue of $993 million, up 6.9% year over year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.23 per share, equivalent to $0.92 annually and a 0.9% yield. Analysts maintain a consensus “Hold” rating with an average price target of $112.08.

BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Bread Financial Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:BFH - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 3,888,457 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $421,314,000. BlackRock Inc. owned about 10.12% of Bread Financial at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Bread Financial by 4.5% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 29,589 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,482,000 after purchasing an additional 1,286 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC grew its stake in Bread Financial by 46.5% in the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 345,902 shares of the company's stock worth $17,323,000 after purchasing an additional 109,864 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its holdings in Bread Financial by 104.8% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 736,604 shares of the company's stock valued at $36,889,000 after buying an additional 376,920 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its holdings in Bread Financial by 3.0% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 157,833 shares of the company's stock valued at $7,904,000 after buying an additional 4,624 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Strs Ohio acquired a new stake in Bread Financial during the first quarter valued at approximately $65,000. 99.52% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Bread Financial Stock Up 2.5%

NYSE:BFH opened at $107.82 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.14 billion, a PE ratio of 8.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.66 and a beta of 1.11. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $105.01 and a 200-day moving average of $89.76. Bread Financial Holdings, Inc. has a 52 week low of $53.83 and a 52 week high of $114.53. The company has a current ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25.

Bread Financial (NYSE:BFH - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The company reported $3.55 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.74 by $0.81. The business had revenue of $993.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $959.32 million. Bread Financial had a return on equity of 18.42% and a net margin of 11.95%.The business's quarterly revenue was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.15 EPS. Analysts predict that Bread Financial Holdings, Inc. will post 12.1 EPS for the current year.

Bread Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 31st will be given a $0.23 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 31st. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. Bread Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 7.18%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Bread Financial in a report on Friday, July 24th. Seaport Research Partners reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $119.00 price target on shares of Bread Financial in a report on Monday, July 27th. UBS Group upped their price target on Bread Financial from $120.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a "sector perform" rating and set a $115.00 price objective on shares of Bread Financial in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Finally, Bank of America reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $108.00 price objective on shares of Bread Financial in a report on Wednesday, June 10th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $112.08.

Insider Buying and Selling at Bread Financial

In other Bread Financial news, Director Praniti Lakhwara sold 2,802 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.12, for a total value of $297,348.24. Following the sale, the director directly owned 4,458 shares in the company, valued at approximately $473,082.96. This trade represents a 38.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Ralph J. Andretta sold 15,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $89.10, for a total transaction of $1,336,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 582,241 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $51,877,673.10. This trade represents a 2.51% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 1.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Bread Financial

Bread Financial, formerly known as Alliance Data Systems, is a Columbus, Ohio–based financial services company that specializes in providing private label credit programs, co-brand credit cards and digital payment solutions for retail partners. The company designs, issues and services proprietary credit products, enabling merchants to offer branded financing options that drive customer loyalty and increase basket sizes at the point of sale. Through its Bread technology platform, Bread Financial delivers installment-based payment options that integrate directly into e-commerce and in-store checkout experiences.

In addition to its core credit offerings, Bread Financial provides analytics, marketing and loyalty services to help merchants better understand consumer behavior and optimize promotional strategies.

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