SMH Capital Advisors Inc. Acquires Shares of 36,993 AllianceBernstein Holding L.P. $AB

SMH Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of AllianceBernstein Holding L.P. (NYSE:AB) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund bought 36,993 shares of the asset manager’s stock, valued at approximately $395,000. AllianceBernstein comprises approximately 1.5% of SMH Capital Advisors Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 19th biggest position.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of AB. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of AllianceBernstein by 51.8% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 916,574 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $35,114,000 after buying an additional 312,878 shares in the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth grew its stake in AllianceBernstein by 43.5% during the 1st quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 27,375 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $1,049,000 after acquiring an additional 8,304 shares in the last quarter. Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. purchased a new stake in AllianceBernstein during the 2nd quarter valued at about $210,000. Curi Capital LLC acquired a new stake in AllianceBernstein in the 2nd quarter valued at about $309,000. Finally, HRT Financial LP raised its holdings in AllianceBernstein by 438.1% in the 2nd quarter. HRT Financial LP now owns 108,143 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $4,415,000 after acquiring an additional 88,045 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 19.25% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Charles G.T. Stonehill sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.17, for a total value of $185,850.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 24,573 shares in the company, valued at approximately $913,378.41. This represents a 16.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 2.70% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have weighed in on AB. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of AllianceBernstein from $40.00 to $39.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Evercore set a $39.00 price target on AllianceBernstein in a report on Friday, July 10th. Zacks Research upgraded AllianceBernstein from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, June 29th. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on AllianceBernstein from $37.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of AllianceBernstein in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $39.50.

AllianceBernstein Trading Up 0.3%

AllianceBernstein stock opened at $36.68 on Friday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $36.73 and a 200 day moving average price of $38.12. AllianceBernstein Holding L.P. has a 12-month low of $34.92 and a 12-month high of $44.11. The stock has a market cap of $3.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.85, a PEG ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 0.80.

AllianceBernstein (NYSE:AB) last posted its earnings results on Friday, July 31st. The asset manager reported $0.82 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.83 by ($0.01). AllianceBernstein had a net margin of 6.60% and a return on equity of 25.94%. The firm had revenue of $887.55 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $907.67 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.76 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that AllianceBernstein Holding L.P. will post 3.48 EPS for the current year.

AllianceBernstein Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 27th. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 12th will be issued a $0.82 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 12th. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 8.9%. AllianceBernstein’s dividend payout ratio is currently 97.04%.

AllianceBernstein Company Profile

AllianceBernstein is a global investment management firm that offers a broad range of research-driven strategies across equities, fixed income, multi-asset solutions and alternative investments. The firm provides active and quantitative portfolio management, drawing on in-house research capabilities to serve the needs of institutional clients, private wealth investors and intermediaries. Its product lineup encompasses mutual funds, separately managed accounts and customized investment vehicles designed to meet diverse risk-return objectives.

The firm’s roots date back to 1967 with the founding of Sanford C.