Bread Financial (NYSE:BFH) Now Covered by Analysts at UBS Group

UBS Group assumed coverage on shares of Bread Financial (NYSE:BFH) in a report issued on Thursday morning, Marketbeat.com reports. The firm issued a buy rating and a $92.00 price objective on the stock.

Other equities analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Bread Financial in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Zacks Research lowered Bread Financial from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, December 22nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on Bread Financial from $82.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded Bread Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $84.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Evercore ISI set a $81.00 price target on shares of Bread Financial in a research report on Tuesday. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $78.00.

Bread Financial Stock Performance

Shares of Bread Financial stock opened at $81.21 on Thursday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $70.35 and a 200 day moving average price of $64.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.27, a PEG ratio of 0.56 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a quick ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. Bread Financial has a 52 week low of $38.21 and a 52 week high of $81.49.

Bread Financial (NYSE:BFH) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 23rd. The company reported $4.02 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.11 by $1.91. Bread Financial had a net margin of 10.08% and a return on equity of 15.97%. The company had revenue of $1.24 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $974.30 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.83 EPS. Bread Financial’s revenue was down 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Bread Financial will post 6.45 EPS for the current year.

Bread Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 7th were given a $0.23 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 7th. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. This is a boost from Bread Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. Bread Financial’s payout ratio is currently 9.37%.

Bread Financial announced that its board has approved a stock buyback program on Thursday, October 23rd that authorizes the company to repurchase $200.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to reacquire up to 7.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bread Financial

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in BFH. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its position in Bread Financial by 141.2% during the third quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 562 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 329 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Bread Financial by 127.2% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 711 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 398 shares in the last quarter. BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Bread Financial during the 2nd quarter valued at about $42,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd increased its stake in shares of Bread Financial by 8,300.0% in the 3rd quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 840 shares of the company’s stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 830 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quarry LP raised its holdings in Bread Financial by 1,509.1% in the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 885 shares of the company’s stock worth $49,000 after purchasing an additional 830 shares during the period. 99.52% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Bread Financial Company Profile

Bread Financial, formerly known as Alliance Data Systems, is a Columbus, Ohio–based financial services company that specializes in providing private label credit programs, co-brand credit cards and digital payment solutions for retail partners. The company designs, issues and services proprietary credit products, enabling merchants to offer branded financing options that drive customer loyalty and increase basket sizes at the point of sale. Through its Bread technology platform, Bread Financial delivers installment-based payment options that integrate directly into e-commerce and in-store checkout experiences.

In addition to its core credit offerings, Bread Financial provides analytics, marketing and loyalty services to help merchants better understand consumer behavior and optimize promotional strategies.