QRG Capital Management Inc. Boosts Stock Holdings in Brunswick Co. (NYSE:BC)

QRG Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in Brunswick Co. (NYSE:BC) by 4.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 20,288 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 879 shares during the quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Brunswick were worth $1,312,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in Brunswick in the fourth quarter valued at $2,827,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its holdings in shares of Brunswick by 16.7% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 766,509 shares of the company’s stock worth $49,578,000 after purchasing an additional 109,728 shares during the period. Skylands Capital LLC lifted its stake in shares of Brunswick by 38.5% in the 4th quarter. Skylands Capital LLC now owns 21,575 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,395,000 after purchasing an additional 6,000 shares in the last quarter. Hudson Edge Investment Partners Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Brunswick by 20.9% during the 4th quarter. Hudson Edge Investment Partners Inc. now owns 7,574 shares of the company’s stock worth $490,000 after purchasing an additional 1,310 shares during the period. Finally, Financial Perspectives Inc acquired a new stake in Brunswick during the 4th quarter worth approximately $42,000. 99.34% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Truist Financial reduced their price target on shares of Brunswick from $90.00 to $85.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Brunswick from $64.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on Brunswick from $95.00 to $86.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. Robert W. Baird set a $90.00 price objective on Brunswick in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, B. Riley raised Brunswick to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Brunswick has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $81.62.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Randall S. Altman sold 3,417 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.21, for a total transaction of $215,988.57. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 26,683 shares in the company, valued at $1,686,632.43. This trade represents a 11.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Nancy E. Cooper sold 433 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.65, for a total transaction of $28,426.45. Following the sale, the director now owns 25,361 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,664,949.65. The trade was a 1.68 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.81% of the company’s stock.

Brunswick Stock Performance

Shares of BC opened at $58.96 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $3.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.03 and a beta of 1.54. The company has a quick ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 1.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11. The business’s 50 day moving average is $65.53 and its two-hundred day moving average is $74.57. Brunswick Co. has a 52-week low of $58.61 and a 52-week high of $96.65.

Brunswick (NYSE:BC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The company reported $0.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.18 by $0.06. Brunswick had a net margin of 2.48% and a return on equity of 15.41%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.45 EPS. Analysts forecast that Brunswick Co. will post 4.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Brunswick Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 24th will be given a dividend of $0.43 per share. This is a boost from Brunswick’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 24th. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.92%. Brunswick’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 90.53%.

Brunswick Profile

Brunswick Corporation designs, manufactures, and markets recreation products in the United States, Europe, the Asia-Pacific, Canada, and internationally. It operates through four segments: Propulsion, Engine P&A, Navico Group, and Boat. The Propulsion segment provides outboard, sterndrive, inboard engines, propulsion-related controls, rigging, and propellers for boat builders through marine retail dealers under the Mercury, Mercury MerCruiser, Mariner, Mercury Racing, Mercury Diesel, Avator, and Fliteboard brands.