Bread Financial (NYSE:BFH) Reaches New 1-Year High – Time to Buy?

Bread Financial Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:BFH) shares reached a new 52-week high on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $105.51 and last traded at $105.4430, with a volume of 128249 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $103.79.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently commented on BFH. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Bread Financial from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. BTIG Research upped their target price on shares of Bread Financial from $98.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Wolfe Research reiterated a “positive” rating on shares of Bread Financial in a research note on Wednesday, June 10th. Wall Street Zen raised Bread Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, June 13th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price objective on Bread Financial from $67.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $96.42.

Bread Financial Price Performance

The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $91.40 and its 200 day moving average price is $80.37. The company has a quick ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. The stock has a market cap of $4.24 billion, a PE ratio of 8.60, a P/E/G ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 1.12.

Bread Financial (NYSE:BFH) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The company reported $4.18 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.00 by $1.18. The company had revenue of $1.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $992.05 million. Bread Financial had a net margin of 11.90% and a return on equity of 18.79%. Bread Financial’s quarterly revenue was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.86 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Bread Financial Holdings, Inc. will post 10.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Bread Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 29th were issued a dividend of $0.23 per share. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 29th. Bread Financial’s dividend payout ratio is 7.53%.

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

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Roger H. Ballou sold 9,687 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.32, for a total transaction of $874,929.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly 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 filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director John J. Fawcett purchased 698 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 21st. The shares were purchased at an average price of $86.43 per share, with a total value of $60,328.14. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 11,000 shares in the company, valued at $950,730. This represents a 6.78% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Company insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. bought a new stake in Bread Financial in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. bought a new position in Bread Financial during the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its position in Bread Financial by 141.2% during the third quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 562 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 329 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Bread Financial by 127.2% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 711 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 398 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Bread Financial by 58.7% in the 1st quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 614 shares of the company’s stock worth $46,000 after buying an additional 227 shares during the last quarter. 99.52% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.