Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:BR) Shares Purchased by Vontobel Holding Ltd.

Vontobel Holding Ltd. lifted its holdings in Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:BR) by 294.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 14,452 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 10,790 shares during the period. Vontobel Holding Ltd.’s holdings in Broadridge Financial Solutions were worth $2,974,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of BR. American Century Companies Inc. grew its holdings in Broadridge Financial Solutions by 10.7% in the first quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 8,155 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,270,000 after purchasing an additional 788 shares during the period. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS lifted 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 buying an additional 992 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. grew its stake in Broadridge Financial Solutions by 126.2% in 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 increased its holdings in Broadridge Financial Solutions by 1,851.9% in the 1st quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 527 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $82,000 after acquiring an additional 500 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Allianz Asset Management GmbH increased its holdings in Broadridge Financial Solutions by 13.2% in the 1st quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 12,722 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,981,000 after acquiring an additional 1,487 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.03% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Thomas P. Carey sold 12,731 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $201.02, for a total value of $2,559,185.62. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 13,303 shares in the company, valued at $2,674,169.06. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, insider Douglas Richard Deschutter sold 22,722 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $199.00, for a total value of $4,521,678.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 44,680 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,891,320. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Thomas P. Carey sold 12,731 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $201.02, for a total transaction of $2,559,185.62. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 13,303 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,674,169.06. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 48,483 shares of company stock valued at $9,745,637. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BR has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions from $212.00 to $239.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 2nd. Raymond James increased their target price on Broadridge Financial Solutions from $205.00 to $214.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 2nd. DA Davidson restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $185.00 target price on shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Evercore ISI reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $230.00 price target on shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions in a research report on Tuesday, March 26th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Broadridge Financial Solutions from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 12th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, 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 Broadridge Financial Solutions stock opened at $192.98 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.77, a quick ratio of 1.40 and a current ratio of 1.40. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $200.84 and its 200 day moving average price is $193.89. The company has a market cap of $22.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.62 and a beta of 0.99. Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. has a one year low of $139.52 and a one year high of $210.24.

Broadridge Financial Solutions (NYSE:BR) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The business services provider reported $0.92 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.89 by $0.03. Broadridge Financial Solutions had a net margin of 10.82% and a return on equity of 41.12%. The firm had revenue of $1.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.40 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.91 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 8.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. will post 7.72 EPS for the current year.

Broadridge Financial Solutions Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 5th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 15th were issued a dividend of $0.80 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.66%. Broadridge Financial Solutions’s dividend payout ratio is currently 55.75%.

About Broadridge Financial Solutions

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.