Investors Buy Large Volume of Call Options on Broadridge Financial Solutions (NYSE:BR)

Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:BR) was the target of unusually large options trading activity on Friday. Investors acquired 3,280 call options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 631% compared to the average daily volume of 449 call options.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Broadridge Financial Solutions from $176.00 to $181.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions from $191.00 to $201.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 4th. UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $180.00 price objective on shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions in a research report on Monday, August 17th. DA Davidson reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $214.00 price target on shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions in a research note on Tuesday, October 27th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 8th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Broadridge Financial Solutions currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $212.71.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Maura Markus sold 3,180 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $191.89, for a total value of $610,210.20. Following the transaction, the director owned 33,769 shares in the company, valued at $6,479,933.41. The trade was a 8.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, VP Thomas Carey sold 2,501 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $159.76, for a total transaction of $399,559.76. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 8,800 shares in the company, valued at $1,405,888. This trade represents a 22.13% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. 1.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Broadridge Financial Solutions

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in Broadridge Financial Solutions in the 2nd quarter worth about $1,473,918,000. Jupiter Topco LLC purchased a new position in Broadridge Financial Solutions in the second quarter worth $261,852,000. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its position in Broadridge Financial Solutions by 11.3% in the second quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,875,684 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $256,875,000 after purchasing an additional 190,301 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company bought a new position in Broadridge Financial Solutions in the 2nd quarter valued at $197,921,000. Finally, Amundi grew its stake in Broadridge Financial Solutions by 67.5% in the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 1,059,021 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $172,070,000 after purchasing an additional 426,587 shares during the period. 90.03% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Broadridge Financial Solutions Stock Up 0.5%

BR stock traded up $0.90 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $192.37. 212,796 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,315,896. The company has a quick ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $173.03 and its 200 day moving average price is $165.53. The stock has a market cap of $21.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.26 and a beta of 0.90. Broadridge Financial Solutions has a fifty-two week low of $133.83 and a fifty-two week high of $233.10.

Broadridge Financial Solutions (NYSE:BR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 3rd. The business services provider reported $1.56 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.37 by $0.19. The firm had revenue of $1.67 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.65 billion. Broadridge Financial Solutions had a return on equity of 40.32% and a net margin of 13.94%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.51 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Broadridge Financial Solutions will post 10.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Broadridge Financial Solutions Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 11th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, December 10th will be paid a dividend of $1.09 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, December 10th. This represents a $4.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. Broadridge Financial Solutions’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 48.18%.

About Broadridge Financial Solutions

Broadridge Financial Solutions provides technology and operations services to financial institutions, public companies, and investors. Its platforms support investor communications, corporate governance, and the processing of financial transactions. The company’s services include preparing and distributing proxy materials and other shareholder communications, supporting shareholder voting, and providing solutions for trading, clearing, settlement, and asset servicing. Broadridge also offers technology for wealth and investment management, including portfolio and account management, data, and regulatory reporting.