Broadridge Financial Solutions (NYSE:BR) Stock Rating Upgraded by StockNews.com

Broadridge Financial Solutions (NYSE:BR - Get Free Report) was upgraded by StockNews.com from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note issued on Friday.

Several other equities research analysts also recently commented on the stock. DA Davidson reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $185.00 price objective on shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions in a report on Wednesday. Evercore ISI reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $230.00 price objective on shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions in a report on Tuesday, March 26th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions from $212.00 to $239.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, February 2nd. Finally, Raymond James upped their price objective on shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions from $205.00 to $214.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, February 2nd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $206.67.

Broadridge Financial Solutions Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:BR traded down $1.92 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $198.83. The company had a trading volume of 398,033 shares, compared to its average volume of 522,786. The company's 50 day moving average price is $201.21 and its 200 day moving average price is $193.52. The company has a current ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 1.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.77. The stock has a market cap of $23.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.64 and a beta of 0.99. Broadridge Financial Solutions has a 52-week low of $139.52 and a 52-week high of $210.24.

Broadridge Financial Solutions (NYSE:BR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The business services provider reported $0.92 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.89 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $1.41 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.40 billion. Broadridge Financial Solutions had a net margin of 10.82% and a return on equity of 41.12%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 8.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.91 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Broadridge Financial Solutions will post 7.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Douglas Richard Deschutter sold 22,722 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $199.00, for a total value of $4,521,678.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 44,680 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,891,320. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Broadridge Financial Solutions news, Director Robert N. Duelks sold 830 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $201.58, for a total transaction of $167,311.40. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 5,445 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,097,603.10. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Douglas Richard Deschutter sold 22,722 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $199.00, for a total value of $4,521,678.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 44,680 shares in the company, valued at $8,891,320. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 48,483 shares of company stock worth $9,745,637 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 1.60% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Broadridge Financial Solutions

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. American Century Companies Inc. grew its position in shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions by 10.7% during the 1st quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 8,155 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,270,000 after acquiring an additional 788 shares during the period. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS grew its position in shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions by 6.8% during the 1st quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS now owns 15,625 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $2,433,000 after acquiring an additional 992 shares during the period. Raymond James Trust N.A. grew its position in shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions by 126.2% during the 1st quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 3,384 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $527,000 after acquiring an additional 1,888 shares during the period. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board grew its position in shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions by 1,851.9% during the 1st quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 527 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $82,000 after acquiring an additional 500 shares during the period. Finally, Allianz Asset Management GmbH grew its position in shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions by 13.2% during the 1st quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 12,722 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,981,000 after acquiring an additional 1,487 shares during the period. 90.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.

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