Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Boosts Position in Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. $BR

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System boosted its holdings in shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:BR) by 3.5% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,664 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 191 shares during the quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings in Broadridge Financial Solutions were worth $1,377,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. D.A. Davidson & CO. purchased a new stake in Broadridge Financial Solutions in the first quarter valued at $217,000. CWA Asset Management Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions by 6.8% in the 1st quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 1,370 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $332,000 after buying an additional 87 shares during the period. Golden State Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions in the 1st quarter valued at about $29,000. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC raised its position in Broadridge Financial Solutions by 9.6% during the first quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,153 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $279,000 after acquiring an additional 101 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Triangle Securities Wealth Management purchased a new position in Broadridge Financial Solutions during the second quarter valued at approximately $784,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.03% of the company’s stock.

Broadridge Financial Solutions Stock Down 0.6%

NYSE BR opened at $232.81 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $250.05 and a 200 day moving average price of $242.56. Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. has a one year low of $208.20 and a one year high of $271.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 0.98. The company has a market cap of $27.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.84 and a beta of 0.95.

Broadridge Financial Solutions (NYSE:BR) last released its earnings results on Thursday, March 3rd. The business services provider reported $0.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The business had revenue of $1.05 billion during the quarter. Broadridge Financial Solutions had a net margin of 12.19% and a return on equity of 42.72%. Research analysts anticipate that Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. will post 8.53 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Broadridge Financial Solutions Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 2nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, September 11th were paid a $0.975 dividend. This is a positive change from Broadridge Financial Solutions’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.88. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, September 11th. This represents a $3.90 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.7%. Broadridge Financial Solutions’s dividend payout ratio is 55.01%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently commented on BR. Needham & Company LLC raised their price objective on shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions from $300.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 6th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions in a research note on Wednesday. Wall Street Zen upgraded Broadridge Financial Solutions from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, October 4th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Broadridge Financial Solutions from $222.00 to $261.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Finally, UBS Group raised their price objective on Broadridge Financial Solutions from $250.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, August 8th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $261.50.

Insider Activity at Broadridge Financial Solutions

In related news, CEO Timothy C. Gokey sold 5,674 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $258.37, for a total value of $1,465,991.38. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 143,285 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $37,020,545.45. This trade represents a 3.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, President Christopher John Perry sold 7,036 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $262.72, for a total value of $1,848,497.92. Following the completion of the sale, the president owned 48,813 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,824,151.36. The trade was a 12.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 147,532 shares of company stock valued at $38,417,208. Insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

About Broadridge Financial Solutions

Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc provides investor communications and technology-driven solutions for the financial services industry. The company's Investor Communication Solutions segment processes and distributes proxy materials to investors in equity securities and mutual funds, as well as facilitates related vote processing services; and distributes regulatory reports, class action, and corporate action/reorganization event information, as well as tax reporting solutions.