Brookfield Asset Management (NYSE:BAM) Upgraded by StockNews.com to Hold Rating

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Brookfield Asset Management (NYSE:BAM) (TSE:BAM.A) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research report report published on Thursday.

Several other analysts have also recently commented on BAM. UBS Group began coverage on shares of Brookfield Asset Management in a research note on Monday, December 16th. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on shares of Brookfield Asset Management from $57.00 to $56.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 13th. HSBC upgraded shares of Brookfield Asset Management from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Brookfield Asset Management from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, CIBC upped their target price on shares of Brookfield Asset Management from $63.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Brookfield Asset Management presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $56.38.

Brookfield Asset Management Stock Performance

BAM opened at $49.35 on Thursday. Brookfield Asset Management has a fifty-two week low of $37.29 and a fifty-two week high of $62.61. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $55.23 and its 200 day moving average is $53.13. The stock has a market cap of $21.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.50.

Brookfield Asset Management (NYSE:BAM) (TSE:BAM.A) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The financial services provider reported $0.40 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.39 by $0.01. Brookfield Asset Management had a net margin of 54.47% and a return on equity of 81.16%. On average, equities research analysts predict that Brookfield Asset Management will post 1.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Brookfield Asset Management Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be paid a $0.4375 dividend. This is an increase from Brookfield Asset Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. This represents a $1.75 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.55%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. Brookfield Asset Management’s dividend payout ratio is currently 132.58%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Brookfield Asset Management

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BAM. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in Brookfield Asset Management by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 8,867,458 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $419,400,000 after acquiring an additional 24,409 shares in the last quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. bought a new position in Brookfield Asset Management in the 3rd quarter worth about $219,000. Pathstone Holdings LLC grew its stake in Brookfield Asset Management by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC now owns 29,166 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,379,000 after acquiring an additional 278 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its stake in Brookfield Asset Management by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 60,805 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,875,000 after acquiring an additional 1,007 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Avior Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Brookfield Asset Management by 2,857.1% in the 3rd quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 10,350 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $489,000 after acquiring an additional 10,000 shares in the last quarter. 68.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Brookfield Asset Management

Brookfield Asset Management Ltd. is a real estate investment firm specializing in alternative asset management services. Its renewable power and transition business includes the operates in the hydroelectric, wind, solar, distributed generation, and sustainable solution sector. The company's infrastructure business engages in the utilities, transport, midstream, and data infrastructure sectors.