Ledyard National Bank Invests $244,000 in Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:BR)

Ledyard National Bank bought a new position in shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:BR) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 1,188 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $244,000.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Mather Group LLC. grew its holdings in shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions by 10.3% in the fourth quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 2,772 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $570,000 after purchasing an additional 258 shares in the last quarter. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated raised its position in Broadridge Financial Solutions by 12.9% in the 4th quarter. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated now owns 1,099 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $226,000 after purchasing an additional 126 shares during the last quarter. Shufro Rose & Co. LLC purchased a new stake in Broadridge Financial Solutions in the 4th quarter valued at $514,000. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC raised its position in Broadridge Financial Solutions by 11.1% in the 4th quarter. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC now owns 8,112 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,669,000 after purchasing an additional 809 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Stuart Chaussee & Associates Inc. purchased a new position in Broadridge Financial Solutions during the 4th quarter worth $34,000. 90.03% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Broadridge Financial Solutions

In other news, insider Douglas Richard Deschutter sold 22,722 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $199.00, for a total value of $4,521,678.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 44,680 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,891,320. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, VP Thomas P. Carey sold 12,731 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $201.02, for a total value of $2,559,185.62. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 13,303 shares in the company, valued at $2,674,169.06. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Douglas Richard Deschutter sold 22,722 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $199.00, for a total value of $4,521,678.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 44,680 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,891,320. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 48,483 shares of company stock valued at $9,745,637. 1.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. Raymond James upped their price target on shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions from $205.00 to $214.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 2nd. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions from $212.00 to $239.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 2nd. DA Davidson restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $185.00 price target on shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Evercore ISI restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $230.00 price target on shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions in a report on Tuesday, March 26th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $206.67.

Broadridge Financial Solutions Price Performance

NYSE BR traded down $1.79 on Tuesday, reaching $194.50. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 66,045 shares, compared to its average volume of 493,139. Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. has a twelve month low of $143.95 and a twelve month high of $210.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.77, a quick ratio of 1.40 and a current ratio of 1.40. The stock has a market cap of $22.91 billion, a PE ratio of 34.20 and a beta of 0.99. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $200.51 and its two-hundred day moving average is $194.83.

Broadridge Financial Solutions (NYSE:BR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The business services provider reported $0.92 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.89 by $0.03. Broadridge Financial Solutions had a net margin of 10.82% and a return on equity of 41.12%. The company had revenue of $1.41 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.40 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.91 EPS. Broadridge Financial Solutions’s revenue was up 8.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. will post 7.72 EPS for the current year.

Broadridge Financial Solutions Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 5th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 15th were issued a $0.80 dividend. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.65%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. Broadridge Financial Solutions’s payout ratio is 55.75%.

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.