Martingale Asset Management L P Sells 1,984 Shares of Bread Financial Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:BFH)

Martingale Asset Management L P cut its holdings in shares of Bread Financial Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:BFH) by 5.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 32,130 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,984 shares during the quarter. Martingale Asset Management L P’s holdings in Bread Financial were worth $1,962,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in BFH. Picton Mahoney Asset Management raised its holdings in Bread Financial by 2,083.3% in the 4th quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management now owns 524 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 500 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Bread Financial by 207.7% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,394 shares of the company’s stock worth $86,000 after purchasing an additional 941 shares during the period. KBC Group NV grew its stake in Bread Financial by 36.1% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,103 shares of the company’s stock worth $128,000 after buying an additional 558 shares in the last quarter. Choreo LLC acquired a new stake in Bread Financial during the fourth quarter worth about $201,000. Finally, Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. bought a new position in Bread Financial in the 4th quarter valued at about $201,000. 99.52% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently issued reports on BFH shares. JMP Securities reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Bread Financial in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Compass Point lifted their price target on Bread Financial from $75.00 to $87.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Barclays upped their price objective on Bread Financial from $51.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on Bread Financial from $62.00 to $68.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut shares of Bread Financial from an “overweight” rating to an “underweight” rating and set a $33.00 target price for the company. in a report on Monday. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Bread Financial presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $57.08.

Bread Financial Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:BFH opened at $44.49 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $2.14 billion, a PE ratio of 8.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 1.58. Bread Financial Holdings, Inc. has a 52 week low of $32.10 and a 52 week high of $66.71. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $52.59 and its 200-day moving average is $55.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.15.

Bread Financial (NYSE:BFH) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The company reported $0.41 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.34 by $0.07. Bread Financial had a return on equity of 12.41% and a net margin of 5.75%. Sell-side analysts predict that Bread Financial Holdings, Inc. will post 6.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Bread Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th were issued a dividend of $0.21 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.89%. Bread Financial’s payout ratio is 15.14%.

Bread Financial announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Wednesday, March 5th that permits the company to buyback $150.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to repurchase up to 6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Bread Financial Profile

Bread Financial Holdings, Inc provides tech-forward payment and lending solutions to customers and consumer-based industries in North America. It offers credit card and other loans financing services, including risk management solutions, account origination, and funding services for private label and co-brand credit card programs, as well as through Bread partnerships; and Comenity-branded general purpose cash-back credit.