BrightSphere Investment Group (NYSE:BSIG) Stock Rating Lowered by Morgan Stanley

Morgan Stanley cut shares of BrightSphere Investment Group (NYSE:BSIG - Free Report) from an equal weight rating to an underweight rating in a research note issued to investors on Friday morning, Marketbeat reports. Morgan Stanley currently has $26.00 price objective on the stock, up from their prior price objective of $23.00.

A number of other analysts also recently issued reports on BSIG. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of BrightSphere Investment Group from $26.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, October 11th. StockNews.com lowered shares of BrightSphere Investment Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd.

BrightSphere Investment Group Price Performance

NYSE:BSIG traded up $0.03 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $27.10. 237,895 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 264,274. The firm has a market cap of $1.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.51 and a beta of 1.41. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $24.29 and a 200 day simple moving average of $23.42. BrightSphere Investment Group has a 52-week low of $15.23 and a 52-week high of $27.33.

BrightSphere Investment Group (NYSE:BSIG - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $0.45 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.43 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $109.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $104.72 million. BrightSphere Investment Group had a return on equity of 871.33% and a net margin of 15.00%. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.28 EPS. On average, analysts predict that BrightSphere Investment Group will post 2.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

BrightSphere Investment Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 13th were issued a $0.01 dividend. This represents a $0.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.15%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 13th. BrightSphere Investment Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 2.44%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of BrightSphere Investment Group by 29.3% in the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 4,885 shares of the company's stock worth $94,000 after acquiring an additional 1,106 shares in the last quarter. Quadrature Capital Ltd acquired a new position in shares of BrightSphere Investment Group in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $393,000. DGS Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of BrightSphere Investment Group by 14.4% during the 1st quarter. DGS Capital Management LLC now owns 22,929 shares of the company's stock valued at $524,000 after buying an additional 2,894 shares during the last quarter. Denali Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of BrightSphere Investment Group by 99.5% during the first quarter. Denali Advisors LLC now owns 157,091 shares of the company's stock worth $3,588,000 after buying an additional 78,347 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capstone Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of BrightSphere Investment Group in the first quarter worth $378,000. 98.69% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About BrightSphere Investment Group

BrightSphere Investment Group Inc is a publically owned asset management holding company. The firm provides its services to individuals and institutions. It manages separate client focused portfolios through its subsidiaries. The firm also launches equity mutual funds for its clients. It invests in public equity, fixed income, and alternative investment markets through its subsidiaries.