AllianceBernstein (NYSE:AB) Shares Down 3.7% - Should You Sell?

AllianceBernstein Holding L.P. (NYSE:AB - Get Free Report) shares fell 3.7% during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as low as $35.31 and last traded at $35.37. 230,967 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 22% from the average session volume of 295,990 shares. The stock had previously closed at $36.72.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on shares of AllianceBernstein from $40.75 to $41.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of AllianceBernstein to $41.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Barclays lifted their price target on AllianceBernstein from $36.00 to $39.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their target price on AllianceBernstein from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, AllianceBernstein presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $43.40.

AllianceBernstein Trading Down 3.3 %

The firm has a market capitalization of $4.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a 50-day moving average of $36.21 and a 200-day moving average of $34.62.

AllianceBernstein Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 21st. Investors of record on Monday, November 4th were paid a dividend of $0.77 per share. This is an increase from AllianceBernstein's previous quarterly dividend of $0.71. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 8.68%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 4th. AllianceBernstein's dividend payout ratio is presently 88.25%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other AllianceBernstein news, insider Equitable Holdings, Inc. purchased 500,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 20th. The stock was bought at an average price of $34.18 per share, with a total value of $17,090,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider now owns 3,066,838 shares in the company, valued at $104,824,522.84. This trade represents a 19.48 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 2.70% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AllianceBernstein

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Second Line Capital LLC lifted its stake in AllianceBernstein by 5.9% in the 3rd quarter. Second Line Capital LLC now owns 7,907 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $276,000 after acquiring an additional 443 shares in the last quarter. XTX Topco Ltd acquired a new position in AllianceBernstein in the third quarter valued at about $418,000. EP Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in AllianceBernstein during the third quarter valued at approximately $322,000. Stifel Financial Corp increased its holdings in shares of AllianceBernstein by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 208,120 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $7,261,000 after acquiring an additional 5,196 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Phase 2 Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of AllianceBernstein during the 3rd quarter worth about $2,125,000. 19.25% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About AllianceBernstein

AllianceBernstein Holding L.P. is a publicly owned investment manager. The firm is a related adviser The firm manages separate client focused portfolios for its clients. The firm primarily invests in common and preferred stocks, warrants and convertible securities, government and corporate fxed-income securities, commodities, currencies, real estate-related assets and infation-protected securities.

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