Burford Capital (NYSE:BUR) Shares Down 6.5% – What’s Next?

Burford Capital Limited (NYSE:BUR) dropped 6.5% during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $4.22 and last traded at $4.2250. Approximately 5,585,271 shares traded hands during trading, an increase of 82% from the average daily volume of 3,075,446 shares. The stock had previously closed at $4.52.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on BUR. Zacks Research downgraded Burford Capital from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Monday, March 2nd. Wedbush restated a “neutral” rating and set a $4.75 price target (down from $6.00) on shares of Burford Capital in a report on Monday. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Burford Capital in a research report on Friday. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Burford Capital from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Sunday, December 21st. Finally, Bank of America began coverage on shares of Burford Capital in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Burford Capital currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $12.00.

Burford Capital Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $913.91 million, a P/E ratio of 15.50, a PEG ratio of 0.10 and a beta of 0.66. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $8.59 and its 200-day moving average is $9.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 10.93 and a quick ratio of 10.93.

Burford Capital (NYSE:BUR) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The company reported ($0.17) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.37 by ($0.54). Burford Capital had a net margin of 15.14% and a return on equity of 1.97%. The company had revenue of $48.78 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $168.30 million. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Burford Capital Limited will post 1.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Burford Capital Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 12th. Investors of record on Friday, May 22nd will be paid a $0.0625 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 147.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 22nd. Burford Capital’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 44.44%.

Institutional Trading of Burford Capital

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of BUR. Signaturefd LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Burford Capital by 1,687.7% during the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 2,914 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 2,751 shares during the period. Quadrant Capital Group LLC bought a new position in Burford Capital in the 4th quarter worth $53,000. Strs Ohio acquired a new position in Burford Capital during the 1st quarter worth $55,000. Insigneo Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in Burford Capital during the 4th quarter worth $93,000. Finally, Equitable Holdings Inc. bought a new stake in Burford Capital during the fourth quarter valued at about $94,000.

About Burford Capital

Burford Capital (NYSE: BUR) is a leading global finance firm that specializes in litigation and arbitration funding, risk management, and asset recovery. The company provides capital to law firms and corporate clients to finance legal fees and associated costs in commercial disputes. In exchange for funding, Burford shares in any awards or settlements, enabling clients to pursue meritorious claims without bearing upfront legal expenses.

Founded in 2009 by Christopher Bogart, Burford was among the first firms to establish a dedicated litigation finance business.