Balyasny Asset Management L.P. Sells 3,792 Shares of Bread Financial Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:BFH)

Balyasny Asset Management L.P. lessened its holdings in Bread Financial Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:BFH) by 19.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 15,972 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,792 shares during the quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P.’s holdings in Bread Financial were worth $975,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Picton Mahoney Asset Management boosted its stake in shares of Bread Financial by 2,083.3% in the 4th quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management now owns 524 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares during the last quarter. Pinnacle Holdings LLC bought a new position in shares of Bread Financial in the 4th quarter valued at about $46,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Bread Financial by 207.7% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,394 shares of the company’s stock valued at $86,000 after purchasing an additional 941 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV boosted its stake in shares of Bread Financial by 36.1% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,103 shares of the company’s stock valued at $128,000 after purchasing an additional 558 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Choreo LLC bought a new position in shares of Bread Financial in the 4th quarter valued at about $201,000. Institutional investors own 99.52% of the company’s stock.

Bread Financial Stock Performance

Shares of BFH stock opened at $55.59 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.15. The company has a market capitalization of $2.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 1.33. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $48.17 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $55.66. Bread Financial Holdings, Inc. has a 52 week low of $38.21 and a 52 week high of $66.71.

Bread Financial (NYSE:BFH) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $2.86 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.10 by $0.76. The firm had revenue of $970.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $956.17 million. Bread Financial had a net margin of 5.75% and a return on equity of 12.41%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.73 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Bread Financial Holdings, Inc. will post 6.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bread Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 9th will be issued a dividend of $0.21 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 9th. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.51%. Bread Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 14.92%.

Bread Financial announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, March 5th that authorizes the company to buyback $150.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on BFH shares. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Bread Financial from $62.00 to $68.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on shares of Bread Financial from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price objective on shares of Bread Financial from $68.00 to $58.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Bread Financial from $36.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Monday. Finally, Compass Point lifted their price objective on shares of Bread Financial from $75.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $60.27.

About Bread Financial

Bread Financial Holdings, Inc provides tech-forward payment and lending solutions to customers and consumer-based industries in North America. It offers credit card and other loans financing services, including risk management solutions, account origination, and funding services for private label and co-brand credit card programs, as well as through Bread partnerships; and Comenity-branded general purpose cash-back credit.