Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. Cuts Stake in Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:BR)

Key Points

• Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. reduced its stake in Broadridge Financial Solutions by 30.6%, holding 30,856 shares valued at approximately $7.48 million after selling 13,593 shares in the first quarter.
• Broadridge Financial Solutions recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.88 per share, which represents an annualized dividend of $3.52 and a yield of 1.39%.
• The company's stock received a boost in ratings from multiple analysts, with Needham & Company LLC setting a new target price of $300.00 while others have maintained a consensus "Hold" rating.

Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. decreased its stake in Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:BR - Free Report) by 30.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 30,856 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 13,593 shares during the quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc.'s holdings in Broadridge Financial Solutions were worth $7,481,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its holdings in shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions by 50.0% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 3,560,316 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $804,952,000 after purchasing an additional 1,186,555 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,037,015 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $684,971,000 after buying an additional 37,141 shares in the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in Broadridge Financial Solutions by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 1,649,761 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $378,175,000 after purchasing an additional 43,533 shares during the period. Barclays PLC boosted its holdings in Broadridge Financial Solutions by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 1,648,527 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $372,713,000 after purchasing an additional 40,506 shares during the period. Finally, Stifel Financial Corp boosted its holdings in Broadridge Financial Solutions by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 1,615,131 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $365,177,000 after purchasing an additional 20,716 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.03% of the company's stock.

Broadridge Financial Solutions Price Performance

BR stock traded up $1.06 on Friday, reaching $254.05. The company had a trading volume of 1,815,742 shares, compared to its average volume of 562,551. Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. has a 1 year low of $206.29 and a 1 year high of $257.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 1.32 and a current ratio of 1.32. The company's fifty day moving average is $240.60 and its 200 day moving average is $237.11. The company has a market cap of $29.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.20 and a beta of 0.94.

Broadridge Financial Solutions (NYSE:BR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The business services provider reported $2.44 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.41 by $0.03. Broadridge Financial Solutions had a return on equity of 44.82% and a net margin of 11.65%. The company had revenue of $1.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.86 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.23 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 5.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. will post 8.53 earnings per share for the current year.

Broadridge Financial Solutions Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 2nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, June 12th were paid a dividend of $0.88 per share. This represents a $3.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.39%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, June 12th. Broadridge Financial Solutions's dividend payout ratio is presently 52.93%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have issued reports on the company. Wall Street Zen raised Broadridge Financial Solutions from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Needham & Company LLC assumed coverage on Broadridge Financial Solutions in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $300.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $259.00 target price on shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions in a research report on Monday, May 19th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Broadridge Financial Solutions has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $250.83.

Insider Activity at Broadridge Financial Solutions

In related news, VP Thomas P. Carey sold 3,607 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $237.26, for a total value of $855,796.82. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 6,077 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,441,829.02. This trade represents a 37.25% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Douglas Richard Deschutter sold 5,056 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $239.55, for a total value of $1,211,164.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 21,167 shares in the company, valued at $5,070,554.85. This trade represents a 19.28% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 18,116 shares of company stock worth $4,352,298. Company insiders own 1.30% of the company's stock.

About Broadridge Financial Solutions

Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc provides investor communications and technology-driven solutions for the financial services industry. The company's Investor Communication Solutions segment processes and distributes proxy materials to investors in equity securities and mutual funds, as well as facilitates related vote processing services; and distributes regulatory reports, class action, and corporate action/reorganization event information, as well as tax reporting solutions.