Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. Buys 32,266 Shares of Bright Horizons Family Solutions Inc. (NYSE:BFAM)

Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. increased its stake in shares of Bright Horizons Family Solutions Inc. (NYSE:BFAM) by 14.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 251,125 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 32,266 shares during the period. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. owned 0.43% of Bright Horizons Family Solutions worth $27,837,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Versant Capital Management Inc purchased a new stake in Bright Horizons Family Solutions in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Atala Financial Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Bright Horizons Family Solutions in the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. True Wealth Design LLC bought a new position in shares of Bright Horizons Family Solutions during the third quarter valued at about $49,000. Tortoise Investment Management LLC grew its position in Bright Horizons Family Solutions by 76.7% during the 4th quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC now owns 417 shares of the company’s stock worth $46,000 after acquiring an additional 181 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Bright Horizons Family Solutions by 37.2% during the third quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 535 shares of the company’s stock valued at $75,000 after purchasing an additional 145 shares during the period.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price objective on Bright Horizons Family Solutions from $155.00 to $132.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Bright Horizons Family Solutions from $102.00 to $100.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Bright Horizons Family Solutions from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 22nd. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on Bright Horizons Family Solutions from $127.00 to $146.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of Bright Horizons Family Solutions from $148.00 to $130.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $137.67.

Bright Horizons Family Solutions Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:BFAM opened at $126.63 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $7.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 52.76 and a beta of 1.50. Bright Horizons Family Solutions Inc. has a 1-year low of $100.59 and a 1-year high of $141.90. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $124.47 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $123.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 0.61 and a quick ratio of 0.61.

Bright Horizons Family Solutions (NYSE:BFAM) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $0.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.91 by ($0.03). Bright Horizons Family Solutions had a return on equity of 13.63% and a net margin of 5.22%. Research analysts expect that Bright Horizons Family Solutions Inc. will post 3.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, COO Mary Lou Burke sold 1,000 shares of Bright Horizons Family Solutions stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.69, for a total value of $124,690.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 33,449 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,170,755.81. This trade represents a 2.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Mary Ann Tocio sold 2,500 shares of Bright Horizons Family Solutions stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.74, for a total value of $311,850.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 22,757 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,838,708.18. This trade represents a 9.90 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 1.22% of the company’s stock.

About Bright Horizons Family Solutions

Bright Horizons Family Solutions Inc provides early education and childcare, back-up care, educational advisory, and other workplace solutions services for employers and families in the United States, Puerto Rico, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Australia, and India. The company operates in three segments: Full Service Center-Based Child Care, Back-Up Care, and Educational Advisory and Other Services.