Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. Makes New Investment in AllianceBernstein Holding L.P. (NYSE:AB)

Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. acquired a new stake in AllianceBernstein Holding L.P. (NYSE:AB) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 23,004 shares of the asset manager’s stock, valued at approximately $714,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. GAMMA Investing LLC bought a new stake in AllianceBernstein in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Principal Securities Inc. acquired a new position in shares of AllianceBernstein during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Anchor Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of AllianceBernstein during the fourth quarter valued at about $105,000. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC lifted its stake 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 valued at $223,000 after buying an additional 3,000 shares during the period. Finally, Gateway Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in AllianceBernstein during the third quarter worth about $273,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 19.25% of the company’s stock.

AllianceBernstein Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of AB opened at $32.72 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $3.77 billion, a PE ratio of 13.58, a PEG ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 1.25. AllianceBernstein Holding L.P. has a 1 year low of $25.83 and a 1 year high of $35.84. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $33.64 and a 200-day simple moving average of $31.98.

AllianceBernstein Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 23rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 6th will be paid a dividend of $0.73 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 3rd. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 8.92%. AllianceBernstein’s dividend payout ratio is currently 121.16%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on AB shares. TheStreet raised AllianceBernstein from a “c” rating to a “b-” rating in a report on Friday, March 8th. Bank of America reduced their target price on AllianceBernstein from $54.00 to $51.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company 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 research note on Tuesday, March 12th. Finally, TD Cowen dropped their price objective on shares of AllianceBernstein from $40.00 to $39.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, AllianceBernstein has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price 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.