Bread Financial's Price Target Increased to $53 by Barclays

Bread Financial (NYSE:BFH) received an updated price target from analysts at Barclays, which raised the target from $51.00 to $53.00. This adjustment was detailed in a research report released to investors on Friday. Despite the price hike, Barclays has assigned an "underweight" rating to the stock, suggesting that they see potential for further downside, with a possible decline of about 16.62% from the current trading price.

In addition to Barclays, multiple other research firms have provided their insights on Bread Financial. For instance, Compass Point recently increased their price target from $75.00 to $87.00, giving the stock a "buy" rating in a report issued on January 21. Meanwhile, Morgan Stanley upgraded their stance, moving it from "underweight" to "overweight" and adjusting their price target from $35.00 to $76.00 in a note released on December 19. Goldman Sachs also revised their target for Bread Financial from $52.00 to $58.00 while maintaining a "sell" rating, and in December, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target from $67.00 to $88.00 with an "outperform" rating. TD Cowen, on the other hand, lifted their price target slightly from $48.00 to $50.00, issuing a "hold" rating.

As per MarketBeat's aggregated data, the overall sentiment toward Bread Financial reflects a mix of opinions. Currently, there are two analysts rating the stock as a sell, nine tagging it as hold, and five giving it a buy position. The average market rating sits at "Hold" with a mean price target of approximately $58.92.

Bread Financial's Market Performance

On Friday, shares of Bread Financial opened at $63.57. Over the past year, the stock's performance has seen a low of $32.10 and a peak at $66.71. The company has a market capitalization of $3.16 billion, with a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.12 and a beta of 1.94, suggesting a level of volatility relative to the broader market. The stock also shows a fifty-day moving average of $61.69 and a two-hundred-day average of $55.49.

Bread Financial reported its most recent quarterly earnings on January 30, where it posted earnings per share (EPS) of $0.41, which was higher than the expected $0.34 by $0.07. The company has demonstrated a return on equity of 13.33% and a net margin of 6.37%. Analysts anticipate that Bread Financial will achieve an EPS of approximately 7.6 for the current year.

Institutional Interest in Bread Financial

Recent activities among institutional investors signal heightened interest in Bread Financial stock. Jacobs Levy Equity Management, for instance, expanded its holdings by 30.2% during the third quarter, bringing their total ownership to approximately 1,121,329 shares valued at around $53.35 million after purchasing an additional 260,283 shares. Pzena Investment Management increased their stake by 38.2%, acquiring an additional 243,419 shares, which brings their total to 880,827 shares valued at about $41.91 million. Likewise, Rockefeller Capital Management, Point72 Hong Kong, and Intech Investment Management have all made new acquisitions, contributing to a noteworthy 99.52% of the stock being owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.Bread, Financial, Barclays