Kennedy Capital Management LLC Decreases Position in Brunswick Co. (NYSE:BC)

Kennedy Capital Management LLC decreased its stake in Brunswick Co. (NYSE:BC - Free Report) by 8.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 92,274 shares of the company's stock after selling 8,050 shares during the period. Kennedy Capital Management LLC owned approximately 0.14% of Brunswick worth $5,968,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. acquired a new position in Brunswick in the fourth quarter valued at about $39,000. Financial Perspectives Inc bought a new position in shares of Brunswick in the 4th quarter worth $42,000. KBC Group NV grew its position in shares of Brunswick by 42.8% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,892 shares of the company's stock worth $187,000 after buying an additional 867 shares during the period. Stevens Capital Management LP bought a new stake in Brunswick in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $203,000. Finally, Summit Financial LLC acquired a new stake in Brunswick during the 4th quarter worth $262,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.34% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Baird R W downgraded shares of Brunswick from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, April 4th. Benchmark decreased their price objective on shares of Brunswick from $100.00 to $90.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. DA Davidson raised Brunswick to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday. Robert W. Baird restated a "neutral" rating and set a $56.00 target price (down previously from $90.00) on shares of Brunswick in a research report on Friday, April 4th. Finally, Citigroup dropped their price target on Brunswick from $92.00 to $85.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $76.67.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Nancy E. Cooper sold 433 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.65, for a total transaction of $28,426.45. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 25,361 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,664,949.65. This trade represents a 1.68 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Randall S. Altman sold 3,417 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.21, for a total transaction of $215,988.57. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 26,683 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,686,632.43. This trade represents a 11.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.81% of the company's stock.

Brunswick Stock Up 2.4 %

NYSE:BC traded up $1.04 on Thursday, reaching $44.38. 430,816 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 752,934. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $56.08 and its 200 day simple moving average is $68.41. The company has a current ratio of 1.65, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11. Brunswick Co. has a 12 month low of $41.00 and a 12 month high of $87.65. The company has a market capitalization of $2.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.43 and a beta of 1.42.

Brunswick (NYSE:BC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The company reported $0.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.18 by $0.06. Brunswick had a return on equity of 15.41% and a net margin of 2.48%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.45 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Brunswick Co. will post 4.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Brunswick Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Monday, February 24th were paid a dividend of $0.43 per share. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.88%. This is a boost from Brunswick's previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 24th. Brunswick's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 90.53%.

Brunswick Profile

Brunswick Corporation designs, manufactures, and markets recreation products in the United States, Europe, the Asia-Pacific, Canada, and internationally. It operates through four segments: Propulsion, Engine P&A, Navico Group, and Boat. The Propulsion segment provides outboard, sterndrive, inboard engines, propulsion-related controls, rigging, and propellers for boat builders through marine retail dealers under the Mercury, Mercury MerCruiser, Mariner, Mercury Racing, Mercury Diesel, Avator, and Fliteboard brands.