AllianceBernstein Holding L.P. $AB Shares Acquired by D.A. Davidson & CO.

D.A. Davidson & CO. boosted its stake in AllianceBernstein Holding L.P. (NYSE:AB) by 10.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 165,739 shares of the asset manager’s stock after acquiring an additional 15,974 shares during the quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. owned 0.18% of AllianceBernstein worth $6,378,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AB. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its holdings in AllianceBernstein by 51.8% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 916,574 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $35,114,000 after purchasing an additional 312,878 shares in the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth lifted its position in AllianceBernstein by 43.5% during the first quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 27,375 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $1,049,000 after buying an additional 8,304 shares in the last quarter. Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. acquired a new position in AllianceBernstein in the 2nd quarter valued at about $210,000. Curi Capital LLC purchased a new stake in AllianceBernstein in the second quarter valued at $309,000. Finally, HRT Financial LP raised its holdings in AllianceBernstein by 438.1% in the 2nd quarter. HRT Financial LP now owns 108,143 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $4,415,000 after buying an additional 88,045 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 19.25% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AB has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued a “negative” rating on shares of AllianceBernstein in a research report on Friday, April 17th. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of AllianceBernstein in a research note on Wednesday, January 14th. Zacks Research downgraded AllianceBernstein from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Weiss Ratings upgraded AllianceBernstein from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. Finally, Barclays reduced their price target on shares of AllianceBernstein from $41.00 to $40.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 17th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $41.42.

AllianceBernstein Stock Up 1.2%

Shares of AllianceBernstein stock opened at $38.53 on Wednesday. AllianceBernstein Holding L.P. has a 52-week low of $35.59 and a 52-week high of $44.11. The company has a market capitalization of $3.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.84, a P/E/G ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a 50 day moving average of $38.38 and a 200 day moving average of $39.44.

AllianceBernstein (NYSE:AB) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The asset manager reported $0.83 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.87 by ($0.04). AllianceBernstein had a net margin of 6.62% and a return on equity of 21.17%. The firm had revenue of $871.14 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $914.51 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.80 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that AllianceBernstein Holding L.P. will post 3.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AllianceBernstein Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 21st. Investors of record on Friday, May 8th will be issued a $0.83 dividend. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 8.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 8th. AllianceBernstein’s dividend payout ratio is 128.00%.

More AllianceBernstein News

Here are the key news stories impacting AllianceBernstein this week:

• Positive Sentiment: AB declared a quarterly cash distribution of $0.83 per unit (matching adjusted net income) with an indicated yield around 8.6%, supporting income-focused investor demand. PR Newswire — First Quarter Results
• Positive Sentiment: Profitability remains strong: Q1 showed a return on equity ~21.2% and a positive net margin, and revenue was up ~3.9% year-over-year — metrics investors view as evidence of operating resilience. MarketBeat — Q1 Results & Transcript
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings call transcript and slide deck are available for deeper read on strategy and flows; useful for assessing management commentary on growth initiatives and mergers. Seeking Alpha — Q1 Earnings Call Transcript
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst write-ups note management balancing multiple growth engines amid equity-market headwinds; useful context but not a clear near-term catalyst. TipRanks — Call Highlights
• Negative Sentiment: Q1 results missed consensus: EPS $0.83 vs. $0.85 expected and revenue $871.1M vs. $914.5M expected — the top- and bottom-line shortfall is a near-term negative for sentiment and could pressure fee-related revenue if flows weaken. MarketBeat — Earnings Miss
• Negative Sentiment: Commentary and coverage signal that dividend levels have shifted relative to prior payouts (article notes a drop), which may raise questions about distribution sustainability if earnings/flows weaken. Seeking Alpha — Dividend Analysis

About AllianceBernstein

AllianceBernstein is a global investment management firm that offers a broad range of research-driven strategies across equities, fixed income, multi-asset solutions and alternative investments. The firm provides active and quantitative portfolio management, drawing on in-house research capabilities to serve the needs of institutional clients, private wealth investors and intermediaries. Its product lineup encompasses mutual funds, separately managed accounts and customized investment vehicles designed to meet diverse risk-return objectives.

The firm’s roots date back to 1967 with the founding of Sanford C.