AllianceBernstein Holding L.P. (NYSE:AB) Shares Bought by Avantax Advisory Services Inc.

Avantax Advisory Services Inc. lifted its holdings in AllianceBernstein Holding L.P. (NYSE:AB) by 7.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 8,014 shares of the asset manager’s stock after purchasing an additional 565 shares during the period. Avantax Advisory Services Inc.’s holdings in AllianceBernstein were worth $249,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Principal Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of AllianceBernstein during the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. GAMMA Investing LLC purchased a new stake in AllianceBernstein during the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Anchor Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of AllianceBernstein in the fourth quarter worth about $105,000. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC increased its position in shares of AllianceBernstein by 71.4% in the fourth quarter. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 7,200 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $223,000 after acquiring an additional 3,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Gateway Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in shares of AllianceBernstein during the third quarter valued at approximately $273,000. 19.25% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

AllianceBernstein Stock Up 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE:AB opened at $33.74 on Friday. AllianceBernstein Holding L.P. has a 12-month low of $25.83 and a 12-month high of $35.84. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.25. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $33.66 and a two-hundred day moving average of $32.27.

AllianceBernstein (NYSE:AB) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The asset manager reported $0.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.71 by $0.02. AllianceBernstein had a return on equity of 15.27% and a net margin of 6.47%. The firm had revenue of $884.18 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $900.60 million. Equities research analysts expect that AllianceBernstein Holding L.P. will post 2.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AllianceBernstein Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 23rd. Investors of record on Monday, May 6th were issued a $0.73 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 3rd. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 8.65%. AllianceBernstein’s dividend payout ratio is currently 121.16%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AB has been the topic of several research analyst reports. TD Cowen lowered their price objective on shares of AllianceBernstein from $40.00 to $39.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 29th. Evercore ISI reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $38.00 price target on shares of AllianceBernstein in a report on Tuesday, March 12th. TheStreet raised AllianceBernstein from a “c” rating to a “b-” rating in a research note on Friday, March 8th. Finally, Bank of America decreased their price objective on AllianceBernstein from $54.00 to $51.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $41.19.

About AllianceBernstein

AllianceBernstein Holding L.P. is a publicly owned investment manager. The firm is a related adviser The firm manages separate client focused portfolios for its clients. The firm primarily invests in common and preferred stocks, warrants and convertible securities, government and corporate fxed-income securities, commodities, currencies, real estate-related assets and infation-protected securities.