Bread Financial (NYSE:BFH) Price Target Raised to $68.00 at Morgan Stanley

Bread Financial (NYSE:BFH) had its target price increased by Morgan Stanley from $62.00 to $68.00 in a report issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. Morgan Stanley currently has an underweight rating on the stock.

Several other analysts have also commented on the stock. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Bread Financial from $61.00 to $64.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on Bread Financial from $82.00 to $92.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 2nd. Wall Street Zen upgraded Bread Financial from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. UBS Group began coverage on Bread Financial in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. They set a “buy” rating and a $92.00 target price on the stock. Finally, BTIG Research reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $98.00 price target on shares of Bread Financial in a research report on Friday. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $79.27.

Bread Financial Trading Down 0.6%

Shares of Bread Financial stock opened at $72.60 on Friday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $73.11 and a 200-day simple moving average of $65.50. Bread Financial has a fifty-two week low of $38.21 and a fifty-two week high of $82.03. The firm has a market cap of $3.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.49 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a quick ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27.

Bread Financial (NYSE:BFH) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The company reported $2.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.26 by $1.81. Bread Financial had a return on equity of 17.92% and a net margin of 11.02%.The firm had revenue of $975.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $954.74 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.41 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Bread Financial will post 6.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Bread Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Investors of record on Friday, February 27th will be issued a dividend of $0.23 per share. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 27th. Bread Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 8.49%.

Bread Financial declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback program on Thursday, October 23rd that allows the company to buyback $200.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to reacquire up to 7.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Bread Financial

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp bought a new stake in shares of Bread Financial during the 2nd quarter worth about $1,142,000. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its position in Bread Financial by 748.3% during the third quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 17,347 shares of the company’s stock worth $967,000 after acquiring an additional 15,302 shares during the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its holdings in shares of Bread Financial by 25.1% during the second quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 1,233,121 shares of the company’s stock worth $70,436,000 after acquiring an additional 247,437 shares during the period. Jump Financial LLC grew its position in shares of Bread Financial by 132.6% in the second quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 198,308 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,327,000 after purchasing an additional 113,053 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Bread Financial during the second quarter worth approximately $16,599,000. 99.52% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Stories Impacting Bread Financial

Here are the key news stories impacting Bread Financial this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 results materially beat expectations — strong EPS and revenue, with management highlighting improved credit metrics and solid margins, which supports near-term profitability. MarketBeat Earnings Summary
• Positive Sentiment: BTIG reaffirmed a “buy” rating and maintained a $98 price target (significant upside vs. the current share level), offering a bullish analyst counterpoint that may support the stock. TickerReport: BTIG Coverage
• Positive Sentiment: Company commentary and investor materials indicate low single-digit loan growth guidance for 2026 and improving credit metrics (delinquencies down year-over-year), which reduces downside risk from credit cycles. Seeking Alpha: Credit Metrics Update
• Neutral Sentiment: Bread declared a quarterly common dividend of $0.23 per share (payable March 16, ex-dividend Feb 27), providing modest income but not a large yield. GlobeNewswire: Dividend Notice
• Neutral Sentiment: Company performance update published December metrics (net loss rate 7.4%, delinquency ~5.8%) — shows improvement vs. prior year but still-elevated loss levels that investors will monitor. GlobeNewswire: Performance Update
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings call materials and transcript are available for deeper read — useful for investors assessing forward commentary on losses, loan growth and buyback/dividend plans. Seeking Alpha: Earnings Call Transcript
• Negative Sentiment: Morgan Stanley raised its price target to $68 but kept an “underweight” stance — the PT implies downside from current levels and signals caution from a major institutional shop, which can weigh on sentiment. Benzinga: Analyst Note

Bread Financial Company Profile

Bread Financial, formerly known as Alliance Data Systems, is a Columbus, Ohio–based financial services company that specializes in providing private label credit programs, co-brand credit cards and digital payment solutions for retail partners. The company designs, issues and services proprietary credit products, enabling merchants to offer branded financing options that drive customer loyalty and increase basket sizes at the point of sale. Through its Bread technology platform, Bread Financial delivers installment-based payment options that integrate directly into e-commerce and in-store checkout experiences.

In addition to its core credit offerings, Bread Financial provides analytics, marketing and loyalty services to help merchants better understand consumer behavior and optimize promotional strategies.