Bread Financial Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:BFH) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” by Analysts

Bread Financial Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:BFH) has received a consensus rating of “Hold” from the fourteen ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year target price among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $80.0909.

BFH has been the subject of several research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Bread Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $84.00 price objective for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Bread Financial from $61.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on Bread Financial from $82.00 to $92.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 2nd. Wall Street Zen lowered Bread Financial from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, February 21st. Finally, TD Cowen upped their price objective on Bread Financial from $85.00 to $88.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th.

Bread Financial Trading Down 4.2%

Bread Financial stock opened at $72.08 on Monday. Bread Financial has a one year low of $38.21 and a one year high of $82.03. The business’s fifty day moving average is $73.90 and its 200 day moving average is $67.99. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.11 billion, a PE ratio of 6.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.46 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 1.17.

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

Bread Financial announced that its board has approved a stock buyback plan on Thursday, February 26th that allows the company to buyback $600.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to buy up to 19% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Bread Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 27th will be given a dividend of $0.23 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 27th. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. Bread Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 8.49%.

Institutional Trading of Bread Financial

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its position in Bread Financial by 4.5% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 29,589 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,482,000 after acquiring an additional 1,286 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC grew its position in shares of Bread Financial by 46.5% during the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 345,902 shares of the company’s stock valued at $17,323,000 after acquiring an additional 109,864 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Bread Financial by 104.8% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 736,604 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,889,000 after acquiring an additional 376,920 shares during the period. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its stake in shares of Bread Financial by 3.0% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 157,833 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,904,000 after purchasing an additional 4,624 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Strs Ohio bought a new position in Bread Financial in the 1st quarter worth $65,000. 99.52% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.