Bread Financial (NYSE:BFH) Shares Gap Down After Earnings Miss

Bread Financial Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:BFH) shares gapped down prior to trading on Thursday after the company announced weaker than expected quarterly earnings. The stock had previously closed at $35.53, but opened at $33.58. Bread Financial shares last traded at $35.05, with a volume of 203,833 shares traded.

The company reported $2.73 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.92 by ($0.19). The business had revenue of $991.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $998.96 million. Bread Financial had a net margin of 13.87% and a return on equity of 26.24%. The business’s revenue was down 23.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $9.08 earnings per share.

Bread Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 10th will be given a $0.21 dividend. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.27%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 9th. Bread Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 5.87%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on BFH shares. Oppenheimer raised Bread Financial from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $52.00 price target for the company in a report on Friday, January 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Bread Financial from $36.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 26th. Wolfe Research upgraded Bread Financial from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $48.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Barclays reduced their price target on Bread Financial from $27.00 to $26.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 9th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Bread Financial from $31.00 to $33.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Bread Financial has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $36.64.

Insider Activity

In other news, major shareholder Turtle Creek Asset Management sold 45,000 shares of Bread Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.67, for a total transaction of $1,605,150.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 293,092 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,454,591.64. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.62% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bread Financial

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. National Bank of Canada FI raised its stake in Bread Financial by 1,280.6% in the fourth quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 2,416 shares of the company’s stock worth $80,000 after buying an additional 2,241 shares in the last quarter. Pinnacle Holdings LLC bought a new position in Bread Financial in the fourth quarter worth approximately $83,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its stake in Bread Financial by 25.0% in the third quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 3,168 shares of the company’s stock worth $108,000 after buying an additional 633 shares in the last quarter. C M Bidwell & Associates Ltd. bought a new position in Bread Financial in the third quarter worth approximately $116,000. Finally, Quest Partners LLC bought a new position in Bread Financial in the fourth quarter worth approximately $145,000. Institutional investors own 99.52% of the company’s stock.

Bread Financial Stock Performance

The business has a 50-day moving average price of $36.52 and a 200-day moving average price of $33.06. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 2.58, a P/E/G ratio of 0.13 and a beta of 1.93. The company has a quick ratio of 1.18, a current ratio of 1.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48.

About Bread Financial

Bread Financial Holdings, Inc provides tech-forward payment and lending solutions to customers and consumer-based industries in North America. It offers credit card and other loans financing services, including risk management solutions, account origination, and funding services for private label and co-brand credit card programs, as well as through Bread partnerships; and Comenity-branded general purpose cash-back credit.