AllianceBernstein (NYSE:AB) Trading Down 5.9% – Here’s What Happened

AllianceBernstein Holding L.P. (NYSE:AB) was down 5.9% during trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $40.05 and last traded at $39.87. Approximately 920,146 shares traded hands during trading, an increase of 94% from the average daily volume of 473,815 shares. The stock had previously closed at $42.36.

Key Headlines Impacting AllianceBernstein

Here are the key news stories impacting AllianceBernstein this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Company raised its quarterly cash distribution to $0.96 per unit (annualized yield ~9.1%), an 11.6% increase versus the prior quarterly payout — a strong cash-return signal that can support the share price. ALLIANCEBERNSTEIN HOLDING L.P. ANNOUNCES FOURTH QUARTER RESULTS
• Positive Sentiment: Q4 results: adjusted EPS of $0.96 beat consensus by ~$0.04 and the firm reported record assets under management — evidence of scale and operating leverage that many investors view positively. Q4 Press Release / Slide Deck
• Positive Sentiment: Barclays nudged its price target from $39 to $41 and kept an “equal weight” rating — a modest analyst upgrade that provides some upside support but is not a strong buy signal. Barclays Price Target Raise
• Neutral Sentiment: Company earnings‑call materials and transcripts are available for investors assessing management commentary and detail on flows, AUM mix and capital allocation. Review the call slides/transcript to see management’s outlook and distribution policy. Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)
• Negative Sentiment: Management flagged flow headwinds — net outflows in parts of the business were called out on the call and in analyst writeups, which raises concerns about fee revenue sustainability and near‑term organic growth. TipRanks: Flow Headwinds
• Negative Sentiment: Outlook/2025 earnings commentary was weaker: some coverage highlights lower 2025 earnings expectations even as AUM hit a record — revenue was down ~2.7% y/y and EPS is below last year’s level, which pressures the valuation and likely drove selling. Yahoo: Lower 2025 Earnings and Record AUM

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AB has been the subject of a number of research reports. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed a “negative” rating on shares of AllianceBernstein in a report on Thursday, January 15th. Barclays upped their price objective on AllianceBernstein from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday. Zacks Research downgraded AllianceBernstein from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 2nd. Evercore upped their price target on AllianceBernstein from $44.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, December 5th. Finally, TD Cowen reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of AllianceBernstein in a research note on Wednesday, January 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, AllianceBernstein currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $42.17.

AllianceBernstein Stock Down 6.7%

The firm has a market capitalization of $3.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.00, a PEG ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 0.87. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $40.18 and a 200 day simple moving average of $39.80.

AllianceBernstein (NYSE:AB) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The asset manager reported $0.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.92 by $0.04. AllianceBernstein had a return on equity of 20.56% and a net margin of 7.09%.The firm had revenue of $957.31 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $956.45 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.05 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that AllianceBernstein Holding L.P. will post 3.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AllianceBernstein Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 20th will be issued a $0.96 dividend. This represents a $3.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 9.7%. This is a boost from AllianceBernstein’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.86. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 20th. AllianceBernstein’s payout ratio is presently 113.16%.

Institutional Trading of AllianceBernstein

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of AllianceBernstein during the 2nd quarter valued at about $3,135,000. Disciplined Equity Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of AllianceBernstein by 12.1% in the second quarter. Disciplined Equity Management Inc. now owns 60,293 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $2,462,000 after buying an additional 6,490 shares in the last quarter. Moody Aldrich Partners LLC boosted its stake in AllianceBernstein by 131.6% during the third quarter. Moody Aldrich Partners LLC now owns 137,341 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $5,249,000 after buying an additional 78,047 shares during the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC purchased a new position in AllianceBernstein during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $722,000. Finally, Horizon Kinetics Asset Management LLC increased its stake in AllianceBernstein by 42.2% in the 2nd quarter. Horizon Kinetics Asset Management LLC now owns 164,892 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $6,733,000 after acquiring an additional 48,906 shares during the last quarter. 19.25% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

AllianceBernstein Company Profile

AllianceBernstein is a global investment management firm that offers a broad range of research-driven strategies across equities, fixed income, multi-asset solutions and alternative investments. The firm provides active and quantitative portfolio management, drawing on in-house research capabilities to serve the needs of institutional clients, private wealth investors and intermediaries. Its product lineup encompasses mutual funds, separately managed accounts and customized investment vehicles designed to meet diverse risk-return objectives.

The firm’s roots date back to 1967 with the founding of Sanford C.