Broadridge Financial Solutions (NYSE:BR) Reaches New 52-Week High - Still a Buy?

Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:BR - Get Free Report)'s stock price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $244.58 and last traded at $244.03, with a volume of 38465 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $241.22.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Broadridge Financial Solutions from $207.00 to $222.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Broadridge Financial Solutions from $250.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. StockNews.com lowered Broadridge Financial Solutions from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. DA Davidson reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $215.00 price objective on shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on Broadridge Financial Solutions from $246.00 to $259.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $239.17.

Broadridge Financial Solutions Stock Up 0.2 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 1.35 and a quick ratio of 1.35. The company has a market capitalization of $28.36 billion, a PE ratio of 37.93 and a beta of 1.05. The business has a 50-day moving average of $234.55 and a 200 day moving average of $224.86.

Broadridge Financial Solutions (NYSE:BR - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The business services provider reported $1.56 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.32 by $0.24. Broadridge Financial Solutions had a return on equity of 44.40% and a net margin of 11.36%. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.92 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. will post 8.53 earnings per share for the current year.

Broadridge Financial Solutions Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 3rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.88 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 13th. This represents a $3.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.45%. Broadridge Financial Solutions's payout ratio is currently 55.09%.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Laura Matlin sold 514 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $241.60, for a total value of $124,182.40. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 6,602 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,595,043.20. This represents a 7.22 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Robert N. Duelks sold 485 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $237.93, for a total value of $115,396.05. Following the sale, the director now owns 4,960 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,180,132.80. This represents a 8.91 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 6,441 shares of company stock valued at $1,547,835. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Broadridge Financial Solutions

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in BR. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its holdings in shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions by 50.0% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 3,560,316 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $804,952,000 after purchasing an additional 1,186,555 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions in the 4th quarter valued at $106,904,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Broadridge Financial Solutions during the 4th quarter worth about $104,466,000. Corient Private Wealth LLC grew its position in Broadridge Financial Solutions by 882.9% during the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 437,171 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $99,186,000 after purchasing an additional 392,695 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp grew its position in Broadridge Financial Solutions by 24.4% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,604,783 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $362,825,000 after purchasing an additional 314,323 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.03% of the company's stock.

About Broadridge Financial Solutions

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.