Zacks Research Downgrades Bread Financial (NYSE:BFH) to Hold

Bread Financial (NYSE:BFH) was downgraded by analysts at Zacks Research from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Bank of America reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $108.00 price objective on shares of Bread Financial in a report on Wednesday, June 10th. UBS Group raised their target price on Bread Financial from $94.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Barclays raised Bread Financial from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $70.00 to $104.00 in a research note on Tuesday. BTIG Research increased their price objective on Bread Financial from $105.00 to $132.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded Bread Financial from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Bread Financial currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $107.92.

Bread Financial Price Performance

Bread Financial stock opened at $102.57 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.40, a P/E/G ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 1.10. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $93.93 and its 200 day moving average price is $82.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.15. Bread Financial has a 1 year low of $53.83 and a 1 year high of $109.91.

Bread Financial (NYSE:BFH) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The company reported $4.18 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.00 by $1.18. Bread Financial had a net margin of 11.90% and a return on equity of 18.79%. The company had revenue of $1.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $992.05 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.86 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Bread Financial will post 10.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Bread Financial news, CEO Ralph J. Andretta sold 15,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $89.10, for a total transaction of $1,336,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 582,241 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $51,877,673.10. The trade was a 2.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Roger H. Ballou sold 9,687 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, April 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.32, for a total value of $874,929.84. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 30,079 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,716,735.28. The trade was a 24.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bread Financial

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of BFH. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Bread Financial by 4.5% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 29,589 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,482,000 after buying an additional 1,286 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC grew its position in Bread Financial by 46.5% in the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 345,902 shares of the company’s stock worth $17,323,000 after acquiring an additional 109,864 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its stake in Bread Financial by 104.8% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 736,604 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,889,000 after acquiring an additional 376,920 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its position in Bread Financial by 3.0% in 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 valued at $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 in the 1st quarter valued at $65,000. 99.52% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Headlines Impacting Bread Financial

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

• Positive Sentiment: UBS raised its price target to $120 and kept a buy rating, signaling meaningful upside potential for Bread Financial.
• Positive Sentiment: Goldman Sachs increased its target to $108, reflecting improved expectations for BFH’s valuation.
• Positive Sentiment: Barclays upgraded Bread Financial to equal weight from underweight and lifted its target to $104, a sign of improved sentiment.
• Positive Sentiment: TD Cowen raised its target to $103, indicating the stock is now viewed as roughly fairly valued with slight upside.
• Neutral Sentiment: Bread Financial scheduled its second-quarter 2026 earnings conference call for July 23, which may become the next major catalyst for the shares. Bread Financial Schedules Second Quarter 2026 Earnings Conference Call for Jul. 23
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks Research cut Bread Financial from strong-buy to hold, which slightly weakens the bullish analyst backdrop.

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.