Bread Financial (NYSE:BFH) Upgraded at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Bread Financial (NYSE:BFH) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a report published on Friday morning.

A number of other analysts also recently weighed in on BFH. UBS Group initiated coverage on Bread Financial in a report on Thursday, January 8th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $92.00 price objective for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group raised Bread Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $84.00 price target for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. Zacks Research downgraded Bread Financial from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, December 22nd. TD Cowen reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Bread Financial in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, Evercore ISI set a $81.00 target price on shares of Bread Financial in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Bread Financial presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $78.82.

Bread Financial Stock Down 3.1%

Shares of NYSE BFH opened at $68.78 on Friday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $72.23 and a 200 day simple moving average of $65.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 1.19 and a quick ratio of 1.19. Bread Financial has a 1 year low of $38.21 and a 1 year high of $82.03. The firm has a market cap of $3.14 billion, a PE ratio of 7.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.47 and a beta of 1.27.

Bread Financial (NYSE:BFH) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 23rd. The company reported $4.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.11 by $1.91. The firm had revenue of $1.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $974.30 million. Bread Financial had a net margin of 10.08% and a return on equity of 15.97%. The company’s revenue was down 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.83 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Bread Financial will post 6.45 EPS for the current year.

Bread Financial announced that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Thursday, October 23rd that authorizes the company to repurchase $200.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 7.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bread Financial

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Bread Financial by 4.5% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 29,589 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,482,000 after buying an additional 1,286 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC grew its stake in Bread Financial by 46.5% in the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 345,902 shares of the company’s stock valued at $17,323,000 after acquiring an additional 109,864 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Bread Financial by 104.8% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 736,604 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,889,000 after acquiring an additional 376,920 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its position in shares of Bread Financial by 3.0% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 157,833 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,904,000 after purchasing an additional 4,624 shares during the period. Finally, Strs Ohio acquired a new position in shares of Bread Financial during the first quarter worth approximately $65,000. Institutional investors own 99.52% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting Bread Financial

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

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks published a preview arguing Bread Financial may beat upcoming earnings, highlighting factors that could drive an upside surprise. Bread Financial Holdings (BFH) Expected to Beat Earnings Estimates: Can the Stock Move Higher?
• Positive Sentiment: Zacks raised Q3 2026 and Q3 2027 EPS estimates (Q3 2026 to $3.10 from $2.77; Q3 2027 to $3.91 from $3.71), indicating some expectations for stronger performance later in the fiscal year.
• Neutral Sentiment: Zacks maintained a “Hold” rating on BFH and left the consensus full‑year view in its note context (market consensus referenced at $6.45 current-year EPS), signaling analysts are not yet shifting to a buy/sell stance.
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks cut several near‑term and annual EPS forecasts: Q4 2026 was reduced sharply (to $1.18 from $1.72), FY2026 to $9.12 from $9.36, FY2027 to $10.56 from $10.69, and Q1 2027 slightly to $1.99 from $2.00. These downgrades increase short‑term earnings uncertainty and are a likely driver of downward pressure on the stock.
• Negative Sentiment: Additional reductions include Q4 2027 (to $2.29 from $2.61) and modest cuts to early‑quarter forecasts (e.g., Q1 2026 and Q1 2027 adjustments), reinforcing the near‑term weakening theme in Zacks’ model assumptions.

About Bread Financial

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.