AllianceBernstein Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NYSE:AB)

AllianceBernstein Holding L.P. (NYSE:AB) was the recipient of some unusual options trading activity on Thursday. Stock investors acquired 147,495 call options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 14,753% compared to the average volume of 993 call options.

AllianceBernstein Price Performance

Shares of NYSE AB opened at $39.73 on Friday. AllianceBernstein has a 1 year low of $32.28 and a 1 year high of $44.11. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.24, a P/E/G ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 0.87. The company’s 50-day moving average is $39.99 and its 200 day moving average is $39.70.

AllianceBernstein (NYSE:AB) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The asset manager reported $0.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.92 by $0.04. AllianceBernstein had a net margin of 6.62% and a return on equity of 21.17%. The company had revenue of $957.31 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $956.45 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.05 EPS. AllianceBernstein’s revenue was down 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that AllianceBernstein will post 3.58 earnings per share for the current year.

AllianceBernstein Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 20th will be issued a $0.96 dividend. This is a positive change from AllianceBernstein’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.86. This represents a $3.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 9.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 20th. AllianceBernstein’s dividend payout ratio is currently 114.67%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Garton & Associates Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in AllianceBernstein during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Motiv8 Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of AllianceBernstein during the 4th quarter worth about $36,000. Elyxium Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of AllianceBernstein during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $51,000. Heritage Wealth Advisors bought a new position in AllianceBernstein in the 4th quarter valued at $52,000. Finally, Ameriflex Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of AllianceBernstein in the fourth quarter worth about $65,000. 19.25% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Evercore lifted their target price on AllianceBernstein from $44.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, December 5th. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of AllianceBernstein from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. Zacks Research lowered AllianceBernstein from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 2nd. Weiss Ratings raised shares of AllianceBernstein from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of AllianceBernstein in a report on Monday, February 9th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $42.17.

About AllianceBernstein

AllianceBernstein is a global investment management firm that offers a broad range of research-driven strategies across equities, fixed income, multi-asset solutions and alternative investments. The firm provides active and quantitative portfolio management, drawing on in-house research capabilities to serve the needs of institutional clients, private wealth investors and intermediaries. Its product lineup encompasses mutual funds, separately managed accounts and customized investment vehicles designed to meet diverse risk-return objectives.

The firm’s roots date back to 1967 with the founding of Sanford C.