StockNews.com Begins Coverage on Dun & Bradstreet (NYSE:DNB)

Analysts at StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Dun & Bradstreet (NYSE:DNB) in a note issued to investors on Saturday. The brokerage set a “hold” rating on the business services provider’s stock.

DNB has been the topic of several other reports. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “hold” rating and set a $9.15 price target (down from $11.00) on shares of Dun & Bradstreet in a research note on Tuesday, March 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price objective on Dun & Bradstreet from $12.80 to $11.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating and issued a $14.00 target price on shares of Dun & Bradstreet in a research note on Monday, March 24th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $12.00 price target on shares of Dun & Bradstreet in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $11.86.

Dun & Bradstreet Stock Up 0.3 %

DNB opened at $8.75 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $8.96 and a 200-day moving average of $10.88. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -145.73, a P/E/G ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a current ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06. Dun & Bradstreet has a 1-year low of $7.78 and a 1-year high of $12.95.

Dun & Bradstreet (NYSE:DNB) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The business services provider reported $0.27 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.32 by ($0.05). Dun & Bradstreet had a negative net margin of 1.20% and a positive return on equity of 11.29%. The company had revenue of $631.90 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $658.04 million. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Dun & Bradstreet will post 0.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Dun & Bradstreet

In related news, Chairman William P. Foley II sold 2,500,000 shares of Dun & Bradstreet stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.99, for a total transaction of $22,475,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 8,109,644 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $72,905,699.56. This trade represents a 23.56 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 10.44% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Dun & Bradstreet

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in DNB. HighTower Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Dun & Bradstreet during the third quarter worth approximately $176,000. Stifel Financial Corp raised its position in shares of Dun & Bradstreet by 21.1% during the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 67,502 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $777,000 after acquiring an additional 11,753 shares during the last quarter. MML Investors Services LLC lifted its stake in shares of Dun & Bradstreet by 62.2% in the 3rd quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 27,795 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $320,000 after purchasing an additional 10,658 shares during the period. Barclays PLC boosted its position in shares of Dun & Bradstreet by 144.9% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 1,192,700 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $13,728,000 after purchasing an additional 705,707 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Dun & Bradstreet by 15.8% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,677,399 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $53,853,000 after purchasing an additional 639,419 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 86.68% of the company’s stock.

About Dun & Bradstreet

Dun & Bradstreet Holdings, Inc engages in providing business decisioning data and analytics solutions. The firm is involved in providing information with its solutions to support its clients with critical business operations. It offers end-to-end solutions to clients in the small business, finance, sales & marketing, third party risk & compliance, and public sectors.