Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:BR) Shares Sold by Wambolt & Associates LLC

Wambolt & Associates LLC reduced its position in Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:BR) by 20.0% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,245 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 561 shares during the quarter. Wambolt & Associates LLC’s holdings in Broadridge Financial Solutions were worth $441,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Broadridge Financial Solutions by 0.3% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 13,991,206 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,866,238,000 after buying an additional 39,537 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its holdings in shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions by 0.7% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 4,168,197 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $853,898,000 after acquiring an additional 28,180 shares during the period. Capital International Investors boosted its position in shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions by 0.3% during the 1st quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 3,061,983 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $627,278,000 after acquiring an additional 7,970 shares during the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions by 3.0% in the first quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 1,496,678 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $306,609,000 after purchasing an additional 43,958 shares during the period. Finally, Bahl & Gaynor Inc. increased its position in Broadridge Financial Solutions by 0.6% during the second quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. now owns 1,108,867 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $218,447,000 after purchasing an additional 6,634 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.03% of the company’s stock.

Broadridge Financial Solutions Trading Down 1.4 %

Shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions stock opened at $211.25 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $24.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.05 and a beta of 1.05. Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. has a 52-week low of $166.73 and a 52-week high of $223.81. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $209.30 and its 200-day simple moving average is $202.98. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55.

Broadridge Financial Solutions (NYSE:BR) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The business services provider reported $3.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.49 by $0.01. Broadridge Financial Solutions had a return on equity of 42.77% and a net margin of 10.73%. The company had revenue of $1.94 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.96 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.21 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. will post 8.51 earnings per share for the current year.

Broadridge Financial Solutions Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.88 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 12th. This is a boost from Broadridge Financial Solutions’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.80. This represents a $3.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.67%. Broadridge Financial Solutions’s dividend payout ratio is 54.61%.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Laura Matlin sold 673 shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $216.00, for a total transaction of $145,368.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 5,530 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,194,480. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Broadridge Financial Solutions news, CEO Timothy C. Gokey sold 25,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $209.11, for a total transaction of $5,227,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 200,675 shares in the company, valued at approximately $41,963,149.25. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Laura Matlin sold 673 shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $216.00, for a total transaction of $145,368.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 5,530 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,194,480. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 116,852 shares of company stock worth $24,370,893 in the last 90 days. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on BR shares. DA Davidson reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $185.00 target price on shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions in a research note on Tuesday, June 11th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions from $239.00 to $246.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions from $224.00 to $225.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Broadridge Financial Solutions currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $213.33.

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.