Insider Selling: AllianceBernstein (NYSE:AB) Director Sells 5,000 Shares

AllianceBernstein Holding L.P. (NYSE:AB) Director Charles G.T. Stonehill sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.17, for a total transaction of $185,850.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 24,573 shares in the company, valued at approximately $913,378.41. This represents a 16.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link.

AllianceBernstein Stock Performance

Shares of AllianceBernstein stock traded up $0.02 on Thursday, reaching $37.12. 185,192 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 352,295. The firm has a market cap of $3.47 billion, a PE ratio of 10.98, a P/E/G ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 0.80. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $36.76 and its 200-day moving average is $38.26. AllianceBernstein Holding L.P. has a one year low of $34.92 and a one year high of $44.11.

AllianceBernstein (NYSE:AB) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 28th. The asset manager reported $0.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.83 by ($0.01). AllianceBernstein had a net margin of 6.60% and a return on equity of 25.94%. The firm had revenue of $887.55 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $907.67 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.76 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that AllianceBernstein Holding L.P. will post 3.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AllianceBernstein Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 27th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 12th will be paid a $0.82 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 12th. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 8.8%. AllianceBernstein’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 97.04%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently weighed in on AB. Zacks Research upgraded AllianceBernstein from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, June 29th. Weiss Ratings downgraded AllianceBernstein from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Monday. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of AllianceBernstein from $40.00 to $39.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Evercore set a $39.00 price target on shares of AllianceBernstein in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of AllianceBernstein in a report on Friday, July 10th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $39.50.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AllianceBernstein

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of AllianceBernstein by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 10,849 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $417,000 after purchasing an additional 264 shares during the period. Fortis Capital Advisors LLC raised its position in AllianceBernstein by 3.6% during the 4th quarter. Fortis Capital Advisors LLC now owns 7,836 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $302,000 after purchasing an additional 272 shares during the last quarter. Canton Hathaway LLC lifted its holdings in AllianceBernstein by 3.2% during the 4th quarter. Canton Hathaway LLC now owns 12,800 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $493,000 after buying an additional 400 shares during the period. Vivaldi Capital Management LP raised its position in shares of AllianceBernstein by 4.8% during the first quarter. Vivaldi Capital Management LP now owns 9,048 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $339,000 after acquiring an additional 418 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Creative Planning raised its holdings in AllianceBernstein by 3.1% during the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 15,119 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $578,000 after purchasing an additional 450 shares during the last quarter. 19.25% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About AllianceBernstein

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.