Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH Reduces Stock Holdings in Bread Financial Holdings, Inc. $BFH

Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH decreased its stake in Bread Financial Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:BFH) by 64.8% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 9,081 shares of the company’s stock after selling 16,721 shares during the period. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH’s holdings in Bread Financial were worth $672,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Arizona State Retirement System boosted its holdings in shares of Bread Financial by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 14,527 shares of the company’s stock worth $810,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund boosted its holdings in shares of Bread Financial by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 25,186 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,405,000 after purchasing an additional 213 shares during the period. Federated Hermes Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Bread Financial by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 31,126 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,736,000 after purchasing an additional 308 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in Bread Financial by 6.3% during the 3rd quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 5,452 shares of the company’s stock valued at $302,000 after acquiring an additional 323 shares during the period. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its holdings in Bread Financial by 141.2% during the 3rd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 562 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 329 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.52% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Bread Financial news, Director Roger H. Ballou sold 9,687 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.32, for a total transaction of $874,929.84. Following the sale, the director owned 30,079 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,716,735.28. The trade was a 24.36% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Bread Financial Stock Down 2.2%

Shares of BFH stock opened at $83.43 on Tuesday. Bread Financial Holdings, Inc. has a 1-year low of $47.87 and a 1-year high of $99.13. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $77.58 and its 200 day moving average price is $72.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 1.15 and a quick ratio of 1.15. The company has a market cap of $3.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.12.

Bread Financial (NYSE:BFH) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The company reported $4.18 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.00 by $1.18. Bread Financial had a return on equity of 18.79% and a net margin of 11.90%.The firm had revenue of $1.02 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $992.05 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.86 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Bread Financial Holdings, Inc. will post 10.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bread Financial announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase program on Thursday, February 26th that authorizes the company to repurchase $600.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 19% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

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 dividend of $0.23 per share. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 29th. Bread Financial’s payout ratio is 7.53%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded Bread Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $84.00 price objective for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. BTIG Research boosted their price objective on Bread Financial from $98.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Evercore restated an “outperform” rating and set a $99.00 price objective on shares of Bread Financial in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Bread Financial from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, UBS Group assumed coverage on Bread Financial in a report on Thursday, January 8th. They set a “buy” rating and a $92.00 price objective for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $93.36.

Bread Financial Profile

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.