New England Research & Management Inc. Invests $1.47 Million in Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:BR)

New England Research & Management Inc. bought a new position in Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:BR) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 7,150 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,465,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its holdings in Broadridge Financial Solutions by 680.1% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 85,325 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $17,584,000 after purchasing an additional 74,387 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions during the 4th quarter worth $227,750,000. Bank of Nova Scotia boosted its stake in shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions by 642.3% during the 4th quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 81,202 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $16,707,000 after acquiring an additional 70,263 shares during the last quarter. Crown Oak Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions during the 4th quarter worth $7,032,000. Finally, UBS Group AG boosted its stake in shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions by 8.2% during the 4th quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 186,444 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $38,361,000 after acquiring an additional 14,147 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.03% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BR has been the topic of several analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $239.00 price target on shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions in a research note on Friday. DA Davidson restated a “neutral” rating and set a $185.00 price objective on shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions in a research report on Tuesday, June 11th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, June 14th. Finally, Evercore ISI restated an “outperform” rating and set a $230.00 price objective on shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions in a research report on Tuesday, March 26th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $206.67.

Broadridge Financial Solutions Price Performance

Broadridge Financial Solutions stock opened at $197.00 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $23.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.62 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55, a current ratio of 1.39 and a quick ratio of 1.39. Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. has a 1 year low of $161.33 and a 1 year high of $210.24. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $198.10 and a two-hundred day moving average of $199.91.

Broadridge Financial Solutions (NYSE:BR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 8th. The business services provider reported $2.23 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.24 by ($0.01). Broadridge Financial Solutions had a net margin of 10.92% and a return on equity of 40.88%. The business had revenue of $1.73 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.77 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.05 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. will post 7.72 earnings per share for the current year.

Broadridge Financial Solutions Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 5th. Investors of record on Friday, June 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.80 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 14th. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.62%. Broadridge Financial Solutions’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 54.61%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Thomas P. Carey sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $200.40, for a total transaction of $501,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 9,361 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,875,944.40. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Broadridge Financial Solutions news, VP Thomas P. Carey sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $200.40, for a total transaction of $501,000.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 9,361 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,875,944.40. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Robert N. Duelks sold 3,473 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $198.06, for a total transaction of $687,862.38. Following the transaction, the director now owns 22,588 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,473,779.28. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Broadridge Financial Solutions 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.