Brink’s (NYSE:BCO) Cut to “Buy” at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen cut shares of Brink’s (NYSE:BCO) from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a research note issued to investors on Saturday.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Truist Financial lifted their price target on shares of Brink’s from $138.00 to $163.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on shares of Brink’s from $129.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 2nd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $154.00.

Brink’s Stock Performance

Shares of Brink’s stock opened at $115.06 on Friday. Brink’s has a 52 week low of $80.10 and a 52 week high of $136.37. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $125.33 and its 200-day simple moving average is $118.23. The firm has a market cap of $4.73 billion, a PE ratio of 24.53 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a quick ratio of 1.51, a current ratio of 1.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 9.35.

Brink’s (NYSE:BCO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The business services provider reported $2.54 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.47 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $1.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.35 billion. Brink’s had a return on equity of 89.90% and a net margin of 3.80%.The company’s revenue was up 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.12 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Brink’s will post 6.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Brink’s declared that its board has approved a stock buyback plan on Thursday, December 11th that allows the company to repurchase $750.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the business services provider to buy up to 15.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Brink’s Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, February 2nd were issued a dividend of $0.255 per share. This represents a $1.02 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 2nd. Brink’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 21.75%.

Insider Transactions at Brink’s

In other Brink’s news, insider Michael E. Sweeney sold 1,418 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.50, for a total value of $169,451.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 5,755 shares in the company, valued at $687,722.50. The trade was a 19.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.72% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Caldwell Trust Co acquired a new stake in Brink’s in the 2nd quarter valued at about $27,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of Brink’s by 150.5% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 243 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 146 shares in the last quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Brink’s during the third quarter worth approximately $33,000. Mather Group LLC. purchased a new stake in shares of Brink’s during the third quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, Global Retirement Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Brink’s in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $39,000. 94.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Brink’s

The Brink’s Company (NYSE: BCO) is a global leader in secure logistics and cash management solutions. The company provides a comprehensive suite of services that span armored transportation, cash-in-transit (CIT), ATM services, smart safe solutions, and valuables storage. Through its network of service centers and armored vehicles, Brink’s ensures the safe and efficient movement of currency, precious metals, and other high-value assets for banks, retailers, mints, and government agencies.

Brink’s armored transport operations are complemented by technology-driven cash management offerings, including deposit automation and secure vaulting.