Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA Trims Stake in Brookfield Asset Management Ltd. (NYSE:BAM)

Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lowered its holdings in Brookfield Asset Management Ltd. (NYSE:BAM) (TSE:BAM.A) by 6.5% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 5,506,606 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 384,564 shares during the quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA’s holdings in Brookfield Asset Management were worth $298,403,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of BAM. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Brookfield Asset Management by 0.3% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 8,867,458 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $419,400,000 after purchasing an additional 24,409 shares during the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC grew its stake in Brookfield Asset Management by 25.6% in the 3rd quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 25,996 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,229,000 after buying an additional 5,298 shares in the last quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board increased its holdings in shares of Brookfield Asset Management by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 46,513 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,201,000 after buying an additional 188 shares during the last quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Brookfield Asset Management during the 3rd quarter valued at $391,000. Finally, Benjamin Edwards Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Brookfield Asset Management during the 3rd quarter worth $602,000. Institutional investors own 68.41% of the company’s stock.

Brookfield Asset Management Trading Up 2.6 %

Shares of NYSE:BAM opened at $50.77 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $83.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.62. Brookfield Asset Management Ltd. has a 12 month low of $37.29 and a 12 month high of $62.61. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $54.43 and a 200-day moving average price of $53.70.

Brookfield Asset Management (NYSE:BAM) (TSE:BAM.A) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The financial services provider reported $0.40 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.39 by $0.01. Brookfield Asset Management had a return on equity of 81.16% and a net margin of 54.47%. As a group, research analysts forecast that Brookfield Asset Management Ltd. will post 1.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Brookfield Asset Management Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th were issued a $0.4375 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $1.75 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.45%. This is a boost from Brookfield Asset Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. Brookfield Asset Management’s payout ratio is 132.58%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently commented on BAM. UBS Group started coverage on Brookfield Asset Management in a research note on Monday, December 16th. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. HSBC raised Brookfield Asset Management from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Scotiabank cut their target price on Brookfield Asset Management from $63.00 to $62.50 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. TD Securities lifted their price target on shares of Brookfield Asset Management from $64.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Hsbc Global Res raised shares of Brookfield Asset Management from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $56.38.

Brookfield Asset Management Company Profile

Brookfield Asset Management Ltd. is a real estate investment firm specializing in alternative asset management services. Its renewable power and transition business includes the operates in the hydroelectric, wind, solar, distributed generation, and sustainable solution sector. The company's infrastructure business engages in the utilities, transport, midstream, and data infrastructure sectors.