Bread Financial (NYSE:BFH) Downgraded by Zacks Research to Hold

Zacks Research cut shares of Bread Financial (NYSE:BFH) from a strong-buy rating to a hold rating in a research note released on Tuesday morning,Zacks reports.

BFH has been the subject of several other reports. Morgan Stanley set a $107.00 price objective on Bread Financial in a research report on Friday, July 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on shares of Bread Financial from $94.00 to $108.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Bread Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, September 27th. Seaport Research Partners reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $121.00 price objective on shares of Bread Financial in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, BTIG Research increased their target price on shares of Bread Financial from $105.00 to $132.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Bread Financial has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $112.29.

Bread Financial Price Performance

NYSE BFH opened at $97.51 on Tuesday. Bread Financial has a twelve month low of $53.83 and a twelve month high of $114.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a current ratio of 1.17. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.75 billion, a PE ratio of 7.61, a P/E/G ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 1.15. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $106.31 and a 200 day simple moving average of $96.47.

Bread Financial (NYSE:BFH) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The company reported $3.55 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.74 by $0.81. The firm had revenue of $993.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $959.32 million. Bread Financial had a return on equity of 18.42% and a net margin of 11.95%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $3.15 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Bread Financial will post 12.1 EPS for the current year.

Bread Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 31st were paid a $0.23 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 31st. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. Bread Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 7.18%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Praniti Lakhwara sold 2,802 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.12, for a total value of $297,348.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 4,458 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $473,082.96. This represents a 38.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Bread Financial

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. acquired a new stake in Bread Financial in the 2nd quarter valued at $30,000. IFP Advisors Inc boosted its stake in shares of Bread Financial by 125.8% in the 2nd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 490 shares of the company’s stock valued at $53,000 after purchasing an additional 273 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Bread Financial by 58.7% in the 1st quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 614 shares of the company’s stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 227 shares during the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP acquired a new stake in shares of Bread Financial during the 2nd quarter worth about $74,000. Finally, Group One Trading LLC bought a new position in Bread Financial during the 2nd quarter valued at about $102,000. 99.52% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Bread Financial Company Profile

Bread Financial Corporation (NYSE: BFH) is a financial services company that provides payment, lending and savings solutions to consumers and businesses. The company works with merchants and brands to offer private-label and co-branded credit cards, installment loans, buy now, pay later services and other financing options at the point of sale.

Its consumer products and services include Bread Pay payment solutions, credit card programs issued through its banking subsidiaries, and Bread Savings deposit products.