AllianceBernstein (NYSE:AB) Stock Price Crosses Above Fifty Day Moving Average – Here’s What Happened

AllianceBernstein Holding L.P. (NYSE:AB) shares passed above its 50-day moving average during trading on Friday . The stock has a 50-day moving average of $36.48 and traded as high as $36.68. AllianceBernstein shares last traded at $35.44, with a volume of 336,299 shares changing hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on AB shares. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of AllianceBernstein from $39.00 to $36.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, December 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on AllianceBernstein from $40.75 to $41.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their target price on shares of AllianceBernstein from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $42.40.

AllianceBernstein Stock Performance

The company has a 50-day moving average price of $36.44 and a 200-day moving average price of $35.36. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 1.20.

AllianceBernstein Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 21st. Investors of record on Monday, November 4th were issued a dividend of $0.77 per share. This is a boost from AllianceBernstein’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.71. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 4th. This represents a $3.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 8.69%. AllianceBernstein’s dividend payout ratio is presently 88.25%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AllianceBernstein

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its holdings in AllianceBernstein by 8.9% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,873,324 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $97,090,000 after purchasing an additional 234,253 shares during the period. One Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of AllianceBernstein during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $271,000. Blair William & Co. IL bought a new stake in AllianceBernstein during the second quarter worth $226,000. Sei Investments Co. boosted its holdings in shares of AllianceBernstein by 3.8% in the 2nd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 160,489 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $5,423,000 after purchasing an additional 5,891 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Epoch Investment Partners Inc. raised its holdings in shares of AllianceBernstein by 5.5% during the 2nd quarter. Epoch Investment Partners Inc. now owns 169,513 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $5,728,000 after buying an additional 8,842 shares in the last quarter. 19.25% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About AllianceBernstein

AllianceBernstein Holding L.P. is a publicly owned investment manager. The firm is a related adviser The firm manages separate client focused portfolios for its clients. The firm primarily invests in common and preferred stocks, warrants and convertible securities, government and corporate fxed-income securities, commodities, currencies, real estate-related assets and infation-protected securities.