Granite Investment Partners LLC Has $3.73 Million Position in Bright Horizons Family Solutions Inc. (NYSE:BFAM)

Granite Investment Partners LLC trimmed its position in shares of Bright Horizons Family Solutions Inc. (NYSE:BFAM - Free Report) by 9.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 33,616 shares of the company's stock after selling 3,612 shares during the period. Granite Investment Partners LLC owned approximately 0.06% of Bright Horizons Family Solutions worth $3,726,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Versant Capital Management Inc acquired a new position in Bright Horizons Family Solutions in the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Atala Financial Inc bought a new stake in shares of Bright Horizons Family Solutions during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Tortoise Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Bright Horizons Family Solutions by 76.7% in the 4th quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC now owns 417 shares of the company's stock worth $46,000 after buying an additional 181 shares in the last quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC raised its stake in Bright Horizons Family Solutions by 423.2% during the 3rd quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 654 shares of the company's stock valued at $92,000 after acquiring an additional 529 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Avanza Fonder AB acquired a new position in shares of Bright Horizons Family Solutions during the fourth quarter valued at $93,000.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on BFAM shares. UBS Group decreased their target price on shares of Bright Horizons Family Solutions from $148.00 to $130.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 24th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on Bright Horizons Family Solutions from $127.00 to $146.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. StockNews.com raised Bright Horizons Family Solutions from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, February 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on shares of Bright Horizons Family Solutions from $155.00 to $132.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Bright Horizons Family Solutions from $102.00 to $100.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $137.67.

Bright Horizons Family Solutions Stock Performance

BFAM stock traded down $0.40 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $116.32. 255,170 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 437,904. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $123.72 and a 200-day simple moving average of $120.83. The company has a quick ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 0.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. Bright Horizons Family Solutions Inc. has a twelve month low of $100.59 and a twelve month high of $141.90. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 48.47 and a beta of 1.31.

Bright Horizons Family Solutions (NYSE:BFAM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $0.88 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.91 by ($0.03). Bright Horizons Family Solutions had a net margin of 5.22% and a return on equity of 13.63%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Bright Horizons Family Solutions Inc. will post 3.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Mary Ann Tocio sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.74, for a total value of $311,850.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 22,757 shares in the company, valued at $2,838,708.18. This represents a 9.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, COO Mary Lou Burke sold 1,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.69, for a total transaction of $124,690.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 33,449 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,170,755.81. The trade was a 2.90 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.22% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Bright Horizons Family Solutions Profile

Bright Horizons Family Solutions Inc provides early education and childcare, back-up care, educational advisory, and other workplace solutions services for employers and families in the United States, Puerto Rico, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Australia, and India. The company operates in three segments: Full Service Center-Based Child Care, Back-Up Care, and Educational Advisory and Other Services.