Broadridge Financial Solutions (NYSE:BR) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Needham & Company LLC Analyst Says

Key Points

• Needham & Company LLC has increased its target price for Broadridge Financial Solutions from $300.00 to $305.00, suggesting a potential upside of 14.44% from its current price.
• Broadridge reported a quarterly earnings of $3.55 EPS, exceeding the consensus estimate, with revenues up by 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year.
• Institutional investors own 90.03% of Broadridge's stock, with notable stakes raised by firms such as Vanguard Group and Price T Rowe Associates.

Broadridge Financial Solutions (NYSE:BR - Free Report) had its price target boosted by Needham & Company LLC from $300.00 to $305.00 in a research note published on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a buy rating on the business services provider's stock.

Several other research firms also recently commented on BR. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $259.00 price target 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 issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $261.50.

Broadridge Financial Solutions Stock Down 0.0%

NYSE BR traded down $0.03 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $266.45. The stock had a trading volume of 176,186 shares, compared to its average volume of 583,023. Broadridge Financial Solutions has a 12 month low of $206.29 and a 12 month high of $271.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 1.32 and a current ratio of 0.98. The company's 50-day moving average price is $243.20 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $238.72. The company has a market capitalization of $31.21 billion, a PE ratio of 37.70 and a beta of 0.94.

Broadridge Financial Solutions (NYSE:BR - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 5th. The business services provider reported $3.55 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.51 by $0.04. Broadridge Financial Solutions had a net margin of 12.19% and a return on equity of 42.72%. The company had revenue of $2.07 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.06 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.50 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Broadridge Financial Solutions will post 8.53 EPS for the current year.

Broadridge Financial Solutions Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 2nd. Investors of record on Thursday, September 11th will be paid a $0.975 dividend. This is a positive change from Broadridge Financial Solutions's previous quarterly dividend of $0.88. This represents a $3.90 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 11th. Broadridge Financial Solutions's payout ratio is presently 49.65%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Maura A. Markus sold 3,556 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $243.08, for a total value of $864,392.48. Following the sale, the director directly owned 30,892 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,509,227.36. This represents a 10.32% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, 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 transaction of $855,796.82. Following the sale, the vice president 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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 17,048 shares of company stock valued at $4,101,083. Company insiders own 1.30% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in BR. Brighton Jones LLC acquired a new position in Broadridge Financial Solutions in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $580,000. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions by 28.4% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,636 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,048,000 after acquiring an additional 1,026 shares in the last quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions during the 4th quarter valued at $337,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its stake in Broadridge Financial Solutions by 9.2% during the fourth quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 76,135 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $17,205,000 after acquiring an additional 6,430 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Federated Hermes Inc. grew its holdings in Broadridge Financial Solutions by 50.7% in the fourth quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 25,725 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $5,816,000 after purchasing an additional 8,656 shares during the period. 90.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Broadridge Financial Solutions Company Profile

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.