First Trust Advisors LP Has $54.42 Million Stake in Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:BR)

First Trust Advisors LP reduced its holdings in Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:BR) by 11.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 240,682 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 30,446 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP owned 0.21% of Broadridge Financial Solutions worth $54,416,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions in the fourth quarter valued at about $106,904,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in Broadridge Financial Solutions in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $104,466,000. Corient Private Wealth LLC increased its position in shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions by 882.9% during the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 437,171 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $99,186,000 after purchasing an additional 392,695 shares during the last quarter. Zacks Investment Management bought a new stake in shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,252,000. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,773,000. 90.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Broadridge Financial Solutions

In other Broadridge Financial Solutions news, VP Laura Matlin sold 514 shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $241.60, for a total value of $124,182.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 6,602 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,595,043.20. The trade was a 7.22 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Timothy C. Gokey sold 95,956 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $235.43, for a total value of $22,590,921.08. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 169,788 shares in the company, valued at approximately $39,973,188.84. This trade represents a 36.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 124,754 shares of company stock worth $29,397,793. Corporate insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Broadridge Financial Solutions Stock Up 3.1 %

Shares of BR opened at $235.10 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $27.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.79 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.35 and a current ratio of 1.35. Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. has a 52 week low of $188.30 and a 52 week high of $247.01. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $234.68 and its 200 day simple moving average is $230.31.

Broadridge Financial Solutions (NYSE:BR) last posted its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The business services provider reported $1.56 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.32 by $0.24. Broadridge Financial Solutions had a return on equity of 44.40% and a net margin of 11.36%. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.92 EPS. On average, 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 announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 13th were given a $0.88 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 13th. This represents a $3.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.50%. Broadridge Financial Solutions’s payout ratio is presently 55.09%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. DA Davidson reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $215.00 price target on shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions from $207.00 to $222.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on Broadridge Financial Solutions from $246.00 to $259.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Broadridge Financial Solutions from $231.00 to $249.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, StockNews.com raised Broadridge Financial Solutions from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Broadridge Financial Solutions currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $241.00.

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.