West Oak Capital LLC Grows Stock Holdings in Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:BR)

West Oak Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:BR) by 60.4% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 802 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 302 shares during the quarter. West Oak Capital LLC’s holdings in Broadridge Financial Solutions were worth $181,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG acquired a new position in Broadridge Financial Solutions during the third quarter worth $44,746,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its stake in shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions by 3,197.8% during the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 204,366 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $43,945,000 after purchasing an additional 198,169 shares during the period. Benjamin Edwards Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions by 2,302.8% in the 3rd quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 147,004 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $31,618,000 after purchasing an additional 140,886 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions in the third quarter valued at about $274,650,000. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its holdings in Broadridge Financial Solutions by 97.7% during the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 198,878 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $42,765,000 after buying an additional 98,275 shares in the last quarter. 90.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Broadridge Financial Solutions Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:BR traded down $7.94 on Friday, hitting $221.55. The company had a trading volume of 642,686 shares, compared to its average volume of 608,464. The company has a market cap of $25.90 billion, a PE ratio of 38.33 and a beta of 1.08. The business has a 50 day moving average of $228.24 and a 200 day moving average of $216.60. Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. has a 52-week low of $188.30 and a 52-week high of $237.96. The company has a current ratio of 1.39, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.63.

Broadridge Financial Solutions (NYSE:BR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 5th. The business services provider reported $1.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.97 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $1.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.48 billion. Broadridge Financial Solutions had a net margin of 10.57% and a return on equity of 41.79%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.09 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. will post 8.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Broadridge Financial Solutions Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 13th were paid a dividend of $0.88 per share. This represents a $3.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.59%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 13th. Broadridge Financial Solutions’s dividend payout ratio is presently 60.90%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have issued reports on BR shares. DA Davidson increased their target price on shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions from $210.00 to $215.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Broadridge Financial Solutions from $200.00 to $207.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Wolfe Research reiterated a “peer perform” rating on shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $246.00 price target on shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, UBS Group assumed coverage on shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $250.00 price objective on the stock. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $226.71.

Insider Transactions at Broadridge Financial Solutions

In related news, insider Douglas Richard Deschutter sold 24,185 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $220.21, for a total value of $5,325,778.85. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 27,137 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,975,838.77. This trade represents a 47.12 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Maura A. Markus sold 3,880 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.02, for a total value of $880,837.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 27,788 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,308,431.76. This trade represents a 12.25 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 54,532 shares of company stock worth $12,264,846 over the last quarter. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.