AllianceBernstein (NYSE:AB) Director Charles G.T. Stonehill Sells 5,000 Shares of Stock

AllianceBernstein Holding L.P. (NYSE:AB) Director Charles G.T. Stonehill sold 5,000 shares of AllianceBernstein stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.17, for a total value of $185,850.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 24,573 shares in the company, valued at $913,378.41. This represents a 16.91% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website.

AllianceBernstein Stock Up 0.1%

AB stock traded up $0.02 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $37.12. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 185,192 shares, compared to its average volume of 352,295. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $36.76 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $38.26. The company has a market capitalization of $3.47 billion, a PE ratio of 10.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 0.80. AllianceBernstein Holding L.P. has a 12 month low of $34.92 and a 12 month high of $44.11.

AllianceBernstein (NYSE:AB) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 28th. The asset manager reported $0.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.83 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $887.55 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $907.67 million. AllianceBernstein had a return on equity of 25.94% and a net margin of 6.60%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.76 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that AllianceBernstein Holding L.P. will post 3.5 earnings per share for the current year.

AllianceBernstein Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 27th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.82 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 12th. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 8.8%. AllianceBernstein’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 97.04%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently weighed in on AB shares. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of AllianceBernstein in a report on Friday, July 10th. Zacks Research upgraded AllianceBernstein from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, June 29th. Weiss Ratings cut AllianceBernstein from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Monday. Barclays cut their price target on AllianceBernstein from $40.00 to $39.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, TD Cowen raised their price objective on shares of AllianceBernstein from $37.00 to $38.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $39.50.

Institutional Trading of AllianceBernstein

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. NewEdge Advisors LLC increased its stake in AllianceBernstein by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 10,849 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $417,000 after acquiring an additional 264 shares during the period. Fortis Capital Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of AllianceBernstein by 3.6% during the 4th quarter. Fortis Capital Advisors LLC now owns 7,836 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $302,000 after acquiring an additional 272 shares during the period. Canton Hathaway LLC grew its holdings in shares of AllianceBernstein by 3.2% during the 4th quarter. Canton Hathaway LLC now owns 12,800 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $493,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. Vivaldi Capital Management LP grew its holdings in shares of AllianceBernstein by 4.8% during the 1st quarter. Vivaldi Capital Management LP now owns 9,048 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $339,000 after purchasing an additional 418 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Creative Planning increased its position in shares of AllianceBernstein by 3.1% in the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 15,119 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $578,000 after purchasing an additional 450 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 19.25% of the company’s stock.

AllianceBernstein Company Profile

AllianceBernstein is a global investment management firm that offers a broad range of research-driven strategies across equities, fixed income, multi-asset solutions and alternative investments. The firm provides active and quantitative portfolio management, drawing on in-house research capabilities to serve the needs of institutional clients, private wealth investors and intermediaries. Its product lineup encompasses mutual funds, separately managed accounts and customized investment vehicles designed to meet diverse risk-return objectives.

The firm’s roots date back to 1967 with the founding of Sanford C.