Brunswick (NYSE:BC) Hits New 52-Week Low – What’s Next?

Brunswick Co. (NYSE:BC)’s share price hit a new 52-week low on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $54.97 and last traded at $55.48, with a volume of 267264 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $56.53.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BC has been the subject of several analyst reports. B. Riley upgraded Brunswick to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Truist Financial reduced their price target on Brunswick from $90.00 to $85.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Benchmark lowered their price objective on Brunswick from $100.00 to $90.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. DA Davidson cut their price objective on Brunswick from $80.00 to $60.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Brunswick from $64.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $81.62.

Brunswick Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.65 and a quick ratio of 0.63. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $64.48 and its 200-day moving average price is $73.63. The stock has a market cap of $3.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.56 and a beta of 1.54.

Brunswick (NYSE:BC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The company reported $0.24 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.18 by $0.06. Brunswick had a net margin of 2.48% and a return on equity of 15.41%. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.45 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Brunswick Co. will post 4.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Brunswick Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 24th will be paid a $0.43 dividend. This is an increase from Brunswick’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 24th. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.06%. Brunswick’s payout ratio is presently 90.53%.

Insider Transactions at Brunswick

In related news, Director Nancy E. Cooper sold 433 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.65, for a total value of $28,426.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 25,361 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,664,949.65. This trade represents a 1.68 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Randall S. Altman sold 3,417 shares of Brunswick stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.21, for a total value of $215,988.57. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 26,683 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,686,632.43. This represents a 11.35 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.81% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Brunswick

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. FIL Ltd increased its position in Brunswick by 323.9% during the fourth quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 1,114,324 shares of the company’s stock valued at $72,074,000 after acquiring an additional 851,449 shares during the last quarter. Turtle Creek Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Brunswick by 19.7% during the 4th quarter. Turtle Creek Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,965,460 shares of the company’s stock valued at $191,806,000 after acquiring an additional 488,412 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in Brunswick in the 4th quarter valued at $30,097,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Brunswick in the fourth quarter worth $29,646,000. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its position in shares of Brunswick by 17.1% during the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 3,090,078 shares of the company’s stock worth $259,010,000 after purchasing an additional 452,116 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.34% of the company’s stock.

About Brunswick

Brunswick Corporation designs, manufactures, and markets recreation products in the United States, Europe, the Asia-Pacific, Canada, and internationally. It operates through four segments: Propulsion, Engine P&A, Navico Group, and Boat. The Propulsion segment provides outboard, sterndrive, inboard engines, propulsion-related controls, rigging, and propellers for boat builders through marine retail dealers under the Mercury, Mercury MerCruiser, Mariner, Mercury Racing, Mercury Diesel, Avator, and Fliteboard brands.