Short Interest in Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:BR) Rises By 5.4%

Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:BR) saw a significant increase in short interest during the month of October. As of October 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,570,000 shares, an increase of 5.4% from the September 30th total of 1,490,000 shares. Approximately 1.4% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 551,100 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.8 days.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BR has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. StockNews.com upgraded Broadridge Financial Solutions from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Broadridge Financial Solutions from $224.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 20th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions from $239.00 to $246.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Broadridge Financial Solutions presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $213.33.

Broadridge Financial Solutions Stock Performance

BR traded up $1.10 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $211.96. 78,616 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 516,607. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 1.08. Broadridge Financial Solutions has a 12 month low of $171.45 and a 12 month high of $224.32. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $213.51 and a 200-day simple moving average of $205.89. The stock has a market cap of $24.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.98 and a beta of 1.05.

Broadridge Financial Solutions (NYSE:BR) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The business services provider reported $3.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.49 by $0.01. Broadridge Financial Solutions had a return on equity of 42.77% and a net margin of 10.73%. The business had revenue of $1.94 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.96 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.21 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Broadridge Financial Solutions will post 8.51 earnings per share for the current year.

Broadridge Financial Solutions Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 3rd. Investors of record on Thursday, September 12th were issued a $0.88 dividend. This represents a $3.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.66%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, September 12th. This is a boost from Broadridge Financial Solutions’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.80. Broadridge Financial Solutions’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 60.07%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, President Christopher John Perry sold 31,539 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $207.37, for a total value of $6,540,242.43. Following the sale, the president now owns 67,215 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,938,374.55. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, President Christopher John Perry sold 31,539 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $207.37, for a total value of $6,540,242.43. Following the completion of the transaction, the president now directly owns 67,215 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,938,374.55. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Richard J. Daly sold 21,938 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $207.66, for a total value of $4,555,645.08. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 105,094 shares in the company, valued at $21,823,820.04. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 134,386 shares of company stock worth $28,112,824. Insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of BR. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its holdings in Broadridge Financial Solutions by 3,197.8% in the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 204,366 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $43,945,000 after buying an additional 198,169 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Broadridge Financial Solutions during the third quarter worth approximately $274,650,000. Earnest Partners LLC lifted its position in Broadridge Financial Solutions by 25.9% in the first quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 364,195 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $74,609,000 after purchasing an additional 75,006 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in Broadridge Financial Solutions by 8.3% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 941,125 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $185,417,000 after purchasing an additional 72,018 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board increased its position in shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions by 97.2% during the 1st quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 105,871 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $21,689,000 after purchasing an additional 52,171 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 90.03% of the company’s stock.

Broadridge Financial Solutions Company Profile

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.