Burford Capital (NYSE:BUR) Sets New 1-Year Low Following Weak Earnings

Burford Capital Limited (NYSE:BUR)’s stock price reached a new 52-week low during trading on Wednesday following a weaker than expected earnings announcement. The stock traded as low as $9.31 and last traded at $9.4640, with a volume of 2436248 shares. The stock had previously closed at $9.84.

The company reported ($0.09) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.30 by ($0.39). The business had revenue of $174.85 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $136.03 million. Burford Capital had a return on equity of 7.48% and a net margin of 37.08%.

Burford Capital Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 4th. Investors of record on Friday, October 31st will be given a dividend of $0.0625 per share. This represents a yield of 125.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 31st. Burford Capital’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 31.58%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have weighed in on BUR shares. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Burford Capital from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, August 10th. B. Riley upgraded Burford Capital to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 16th. Weiss Ratings cut Burford Capital from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Friday, October 24th. Finally, Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $18.00 target price on shares of Burford Capital in a research note on Thursday, August 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Burford Capital currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $18.00.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Burford Capital

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of BUR. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in Burford Capital by 11.4% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 15,003 shares of the company’s stock valued at $179,000 after acquiring an additional 1,538 shares during the last quarter. Ridgewood Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Burford Capital in the first quarter valued at approximately $26,000. CWM LLC increased its holdings in shares of Burford Capital by 131.3% in the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 3,625 shares of the company’s stock valued at $52,000 after purchasing an additional 2,058 shares during the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its position in Burford Capital by 11.8% during the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 26,075 shares of the company’s stock worth $312,000 after buying an additional 2,759 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Amundi lifted its position in Burford Capital by 1.3% during the second quarter. Amundi now owns 243,022 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,269,000 after buying an additional 3,085 shares in the last quarter.

Burford Capital Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 10.09 and a quick ratio of 10.09. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $11.72 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $12.79. The company has a market cap of $1.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.38 and a beta of 0.56.

About Burford Capital

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.