Bread Financial Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:BFH) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Bread Financial Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:BFH) has been given an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the fourteen ratings firms that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $94.25.

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on BFH. Weiss Ratings raised Bread Financial from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Bank of America set a $92.00 price objective on shares of Bread Financial and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 11th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on shares of Bread Financial from $100.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $105.00 price objective on shares of Bread Financial in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Finally, BTIG Research upped their target price on Bread Financial from $98.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd.

Bread Financial Stock Performance

Shares of BFH stock opened at $89.96 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $82.16 and a 200 day moving average price of $75.67. The stock has a market cap of $3.64 billion, a PE ratio of 7.37, a P/E/G ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 1.12. Bread Financial has a 1 year low of $49.17 and a 1 year high of $99.13. 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 (NYSE:BFH) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The company reported $4.18 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.00 by $1.18. The business had revenue of $1.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $992.05 million. Bread Financial had a net margin of 11.90% and a return on equity of 18.79%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.86 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Bread Financial will post 10.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bread Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Investors of record on Friday, May 29th will be paid a $0.23 dividend. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 29th. Bread Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 7.53%.

Bread Financial declared that its board has approved a stock buyback plan on Thursday, February 26th that allows the company to repurchase $600.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to purchase up to 19% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity at Bread Financial

In related news, Director Roger H. Ballou sold 9,687 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.32, for a total transaction of $874,929.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 30,079 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,716,735.28. This represents a 24.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director John J. Fawcett purchased 698 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 21st. The shares were bought at an average cost of $86.43 per share, with a total value of $60,328.14. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 11,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $950,730. The trade was a 6.78% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Corporate insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bread Financial

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of BFH. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new stake in Bread Financial during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. acquired a new stake in Bread Financial during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its stake in Bread Financial by 141.2% during the third quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 562 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 329 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in Bread Financial by 127.2% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 711 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 398 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd increased its stake in Bread Financial by 8,300.0% during the third quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 840 shares of the company’s stock worth $47,000 after acquiring an additional 830 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.52% of the company’s stock.

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.