Hsbc Holdings PLC Sells 21,187 Shares of Burford Capital Limited $BUR

Key Points

• Hsbc Holdings PLC has reduced its ownership in Burford Capital Limited by 18.4%, selling 21,187 shares and bringing its total shares to 94,122, valued at approximately $1.24 million.
• Burford Capital's stock reported an earnings per share of $0.39, exceeding analysts' expectations of $0.33 for the recent quarter, while revenues reached $191.29 million.
• The company's stock has a consensus Buy rating, with an average price target of $18.00, despite a recent downgrade from a "buy" to a "hold" rating by Wall Street analysts.

Hsbc Holdings PLC decreased its holdings in shares of Burford Capital Limited (NYSE:BUR - Free Report) by 18.4% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 94,122 shares of the company's stock after selling 21,187 shares during the quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC's holdings in Burford Capital were worth $1,242,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its stake in Burford Capital by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 91,025 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,166,000 after acquiring an additional 676 shares in the last quarter. Ridgewood Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of Burford Capital during the 1st quarter valued at $26,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Burford Capital by 20.0% in the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 13,283 shares of the company's stock worth $175,000 after purchasing an additional 2,214 shares during the period. Mraz Amerine & Associates Inc. raised its position in shares of Burford Capital by 2.4% in the first quarter. Mraz Amerine & Associates Inc. now owns 142,909 shares of the company's stock worth $1,925,000 after buying an additional 3,382 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its stake in Burford Capital by 5.4% during the first quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 72,123 shares of the company's stock valued at $951,000 after buying an additional 3,668 shares during the period.

Burford Capital Price Performance

NYSE:BUR traded up $0.10 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $13.30. The stock had a trading volume of 1,160,300 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,422,956. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.31 and a beta of 0.66. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $13.67 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $13.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 10.09 and a current ratio of 10.09. Burford Capital Limited has a one year low of $10.70 and a one year high of $15.73.

Burford Capital (NYSE:BUR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported $0.39 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.33 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $191.29 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $159.02 million. Burford Capital had a net margin of 37.08% and a return on equity of 7.48%. As a group, analysts expect that Burford Capital Limited will post 1.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Burford Capital

In other Burford Capital news, President Aviva O. Will sold 17,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $14.60, for a total value of $255,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the president directly owned 293,479 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,284,793.40. The trade was a 5.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CIO Jonathan Todd Molot sold 210,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $14.60, for a total value of $3,066,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive directly owned 3,406,625 shares in the company, valued at $49,736,725. This trade represents a 5.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 444,500 shares of company stock worth $6,489,700 in the last 90 days. 8.90% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on BUR shares. Wedbush restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $18.00 target price on shares of Burford Capital in a research note on Thursday, August 14th. Wall Street Zen lowered Burford Capital from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Sunday, August 10th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $18.00.

Burford Capital Company Profile

Burford Capital Limited provides legal finance products and services worldwide. The company operates through two segments, Capital Provision, and Asset Management and Other Provision. The Capital Provision segment provides capital to the legal industry or in connection with legal matters directly and through investment in private funds; legal risk management services; lower risk legal finance business focusing on pre-settlement litigation matters with lower risk and lower expected returns; post-settlement finance; and complex strategies in which it acts as a principal and acquires assets that are mispriced.