AllianceBernstein (NYSE:AB) Share Price Crosses Below 200 Day Moving Average – Time to Sell?

AllianceBernstein Holding L.P. (NYSE:AB)’s stock price passed below its 200-day moving average during trading on Monday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $39.53 and traded as low as $37.87. AllianceBernstein shares last traded at $38.10, with a volume of 252,560 shares.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have weighed in on AB shares. Zacks Research cut AllianceBernstein from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 2nd. TD Cowen reissued a “hold” rating on shares of AllianceBernstein in a report on Wednesday, January 14th. Weiss Ratings upgraded AllianceBernstein from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 17th. Evercore boosted their price target on AllianceBernstein from $44.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, December 5th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of AllianceBernstein in a research report on Monday, February 9th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $42.17.

AllianceBernstein Stock Performance

The company has a market cap of $3.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.70, a P/E/G ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a fifty day moving average of $39.85 and a two-hundred day moving average of $39.53.

AllianceBernstein (NYSE:AB) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The asset manager reported $0.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.92 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $957.31 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $956.45 million. AllianceBernstein had a return on equity of 21.17% and a net margin of 6.62%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.05 EPS. Equities analysts expect that AllianceBernstein Holding L.P. will post 3.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AllianceBernstein Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 20th were paid a $0.96 dividend. This is an increase from AllianceBernstein’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.86. This represents a $3.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 10.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 20th. AllianceBernstein’s payout ratio is currently 128.00%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AllianceBernstein

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its holdings in AllianceBernstein by 17,664.8% during the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 3,640,896 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $140,102,000 after acquiring an additional 3,620,401 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley increased its position in AllianceBernstein by 79.2% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 1,412,548 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $54,355,000 after acquiring an additional 624,270 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 312,878 shares during the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth raised its stake in shares of AllianceBernstein by 1,154.2% during the third quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 336,502 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $12,861,000 after acquiring an additional 309,673 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Crestwood Advisors Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of AllianceBernstein by 1,243.9% during the fourth quarter. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC now owns 218,727 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $8,417,000 after purchasing an additional 202,451 shares during the period. 19.25% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AllianceBernstein Company Profile

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.