Bread Financial (NYSE:BFH) Upgraded at Zacks Research

Zacks Research upgraded shares of Bread Financial (NYSE:BFH) from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating in a research report sent to investors on Thursday,Zacks.com reports.

BFH has been the subject of several other research reports. TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of Bread Financial from $85.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Bread Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $84.00 target price for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. BTIG Research reissued a “buy” rating and set a $98.00 target price on shares of Bread Financial in a report on Friday, January 30th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Bread Financial from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, February 21st. Finally, UBS Group started coverage on shares of Bread Financial in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $92.00 target price on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $83.83.

Bread Financial Trading Up 7.5%

Shares of Bread Financial stock opened at $90.88 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 1.17. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $75.03 and a 200 day moving average price of $70.59. Bread Financial has a 1 year low of $44.88 and a 1 year high of $91.30. The stock has a market cap of $3.76 billion, a PE ratio of 8.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 1.11.

Bread Financial (NYSE:BFH) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The company reported $2.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.40 by $1.67. Bread Financial had a net margin of 11.02% and a return on equity of 17.92%. The firm had revenue of $975.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $954.74 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.41 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Bread Financial will post 6.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Bread Financial announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase program on Thursday, February 26th that allows the company to buyback $600.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to purchase up to 19% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Bread Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 16th. Investors of record on Friday, February 27th were paid a dividend of $0.23 per share. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 27th. Bread Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 8.49%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. grew its holdings in Bread Financial by 5.6% during the 4th quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 3,535 shares of the company’s stock worth $262,000 after acquiring an additional 187 shares in the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System boosted its holdings in shares of Bread Financial by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 14,527 shares of the company’s stock valued at $810,000 after buying an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund raised its position in Bread Financial by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 25,186 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,405,000 after purchasing an additional 213 shares during the last quarter. Vista Investment Management raised its position in Bread Financial by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Vista Investment Management now owns 22,858 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,692,000 after purchasing an additional 241 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Corient Private Wealth LLC raised its position in Bread Financial by 6.6% in the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 4,206 shares of the company’s stock valued at $311,000 after purchasing an additional 259 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.52% of the company’s stock.

Bread Financial Company Profile

Bread Financial, formerly known as Alliance Data Systems, is a Columbus, Ohio–based financial services company that specializes in providing private label credit programs, co-brand credit cards and digital payment solutions for retail partners. The company designs, issues and services proprietary credit products, enabling merchants to offer branded financing options that drive customer loyalty and increase basket sizes at the point of sale. Through its Bread technology platform, Bread Financial delivers installment-based payment options that integrate directly into e-commerce and in-store checkout experiences.

In addition to its core credit offerings, Bread Financial provides analytics, marketing and loyalty services to help merchants better understand consumer behavior and optimize promotional strategies.