Geode Capital Management LLC Buys 14,257 Shares of Bread Financial Holdings, Inc. $BFH

Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Bread Financial Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:BFH) by 1.2% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 1,159,731 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 14,257 shares during the quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Bread Financial were worth $85,866,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Arizona State Retirement System grew its position in shares of Bread Financial by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 14,527 shares of the company’s stock valued at $810,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the period. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund boosted its holdings in 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 buying an additional 213 shares during the period. Versor Investments LP boosted its holdings in Bread Financial by 3.8% in the 4th quarter. Versor Investments LP now owns 8,183 shares of the company’s stock worth $606,000 after buying an additional 300 shares during the period. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Bread Financial by 5.1% in the 4th quarter. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC now owns 6,494 shares of the company’s stock worth $481,000 after buying an additional 318 shares during the period. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in Bread Financial by 6.3% in the 3rd quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 5,452 shares of the company’s stock worth $302,000 after buying an additional 323 shares during the period. 99.52% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Bread Financial Stock Performance

NYSE BFH opened at $91.10 on Monday. Bread Financial Holdings, Inc. has a 1 year low of $50.32 and a 1 year high of $99.13. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $3.68 billion, a PE ratio of 7.46, a P/E/G ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 1.12. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $84.44 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $77.01.

Bread Financial (NYSE:BFH) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The company reported $4.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.00 by $1.18. Bread Financial had a net margin of 11.90% and a return on equity of 18.79%. The business had revenue of $1.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $992.05 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.86 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Bread Financial Holdings, Inc. will post 10.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bread Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 29th will be paid a $0.23 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 29th. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. Bread Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 7.53%.

Bread Financial announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Thursday, February 26th that authorizes the company to buyback $600.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 19% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently commented on the stock. TD Cowen raised their price objective on shares of Bread Financial from $80.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on shares of Bread Financial from $100.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $105.00 price objective on shares of Bread Financial in a report on Friday, April 24th. Loop Capital assumed coverage on shares of Bread Financial in a report on Thursday, May 21st. They issued a “buy” rating and a $104.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Evercore reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $99.00 price objective on shares of Bread Financial in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $94.25.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director John J. Fawcett bought 698 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 21st. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $86.43 per share, for a total transaction of $60,328.14. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 11,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $950,730. This trade represents a 6.78% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Ralph J. Andretta sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $89.10, for a total transaction of $1,336,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 582,241 shares in the company, valued at $51,877,673.10. This represents a 2.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Corporate insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

About Bread Financial

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.