Dun & Bradstreet (NYSE:DNB) Shares Gap Down After Earnings Miss

Dun & Bradstreet Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:DNB - Get Free Report)'s stock price gapped down prior to trading on Thursday after the company announced weaker than expected quarterly earnings. The stock had previously closed at $10.53, but opened at $9.89. Dun & Bradstreet shares last traded at $9.11, with a volume of 1,640,654 shares trading hands.

The business services provider reported $0.27 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.32 by ($0.05). The company had revenue of $631.90 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $658.04 million. Dun & Bradstreet had a positive return on equity of 11.50% and a negative net margin of 1.46%.

Dun & Bradstreet Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 20th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 6th will be given a dividend of $0.05 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 6th. This represents a $0.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.12%. Dun & Bradstreet's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -333.33%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently issued reports on DNB shares. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their target price on shares of Dun & Bradstreet from $12.80 to $11.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Friday. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a "sector perform" rating and set a $12.00 price target on shares of Dun & Bradstreet in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC lowered their price target on shares of Dun & Bradstreet from $17.00 to $14.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Dun & Bradstreet currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $12.50.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Dun & Bradstreet

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of DNB. State Street Corp increased its position in Dun & Bradstreet by 9.8% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 5,227,336 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $60,167,000 after purchasing an additional 468,027 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in Dun & Bradstreet by 23.7% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,976,053 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $45,764,000 after purchasing an additional 760,956 shares during the last quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC increased its position in Dun & Bradstreet by 15.5% during the fourth quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 60,548 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $754,000 after acquiring an additional 8,103 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC increased its position in Dun & Bradstreet by 144.9% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 1,192,700 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $13,728,000 after acquiring an additional 705,707 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MML Investors Services LLC increased its position in Dun & Bradstreet by 62.2% during the third quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 27,795 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $320,000 after acquiring an additional 10,658 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.68% of the company's stock.

Dun & Bradstreet Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 0.70 and a quick ratio of 0.70. The firm has a market cap of $4.17 billion, a P/E ratio of -118.06, a PEG ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 1.14. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $11.63 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $11.76.

About Dun & Bradstreet

Dun & Bradstreet Holdings, Inc engages in providing business decisioning data and analytics solutions. The firm is involved in providing information with its solutions to support its clients with critical business operations. It offers end-to-end solutions to clients in the small business, finance, sales & marketing, third party risk & compliance, and public sectors.