T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. Acquires 1,868,117 Shares of Bright Horizons Family Solutions Inc. (NYSE:BFAM)

T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Bright Horizons Family Solutions Inc. (NYSE:BFAM) by 60.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 4,958,538 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,868,117 shares during the period. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. owned approximately 8.52% of Bright Horizons Family Solutions worth $549,654,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Versant Capital Management Inc purchased a new position in shares of Bright Horizons Family Solutions during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Atala Financial Inc bought a new position in Bright Horizons Family Solutions during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Tortoise Investment Management LLC raised its stake in Bright Horizons Family Solutions by 76.7% during the fourth quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC now owns 417 shares of the company’s stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 181 shares during the last quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Bright Horizons Family Solutions by 423.2% in the third quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 654 shares of the company’s stock worth $92,000 after acquiring an additional 529 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Avanza Fonder AB purchased a new stake in shares of Bright Horizons Family Solutions in the fourth quarter worth $93,000.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on BFAM shares. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price target on shares of Bright Horizons Family Solutions from $162.00 to $142.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, December 27th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price on shares of Bright Horizons Family Solutions from $155.00 to $132.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of Bright Horizons Family Solutions from $102.00 to $100.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on Bright Horizons Family Solutions from $127.00 to $146.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Bright Horizons Family Solutions from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, February 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Bright Horizons Family Solutions currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $137.67.

Insider Activity at Bright Horizons Family Solutions

In other news, Director Mary Ann Tocio sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.74, for a total value of $311,850.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 22,757 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,838,708.18. This trade represents a 9.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, COO Mary Lou Burke sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.69, for a total value of $124,690.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 33,449 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,170,755.81. This trade represents a 2.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.22% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Bright Horizons Family Solutions Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:BFAM opened at $117.10 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 0.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.72 billion, a PE ratio of 48.79 and a beta of 1.31. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $123.57 and its 200-day moving average price is $120.25. Bright Horizons Family Solutions Inc. has a twelve month low of $100.59 and a twelve month high of $141.90.

Bright Horizons Family Solutions (NYSE:BFAM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $0.88 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.91 by ($0.03). Bright Horizons Family Solutions had a return on equity of 13.63% and a net margin of 5.22%. Equities research analysts expect that Bright Horizons Family Solutions Inc. will post 3.61 EPS for the current year.

Bright Horizons Family Solutions Company Profile

Bright Horizons Family Solutions Inc provides early education and childcare, back-up care, educational advisory, and other workplace solutions services for employers and families in the United States, Puerto Rico, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Australia, and India. The company operates in three segments: Full Service Center-Based Child Care, Back-Up Care, and Educational Advisory and Other Services.