Alliance Data Systems Co. (NYSE:ADS)‘s stock had its “buy” rating reaffirmed by research analysts at William Blair in a note issued to investors on Thursday, Marketbeat.com reports.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. Deutsche Bank restated a “buy” rating on shares of Alliance Data Systems in a report on Friday, October 23rd. Cowen and Company started coverage on Alliance Data Systems in a report on Wednesday, September 30th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $327.00 price target on the stock. Sterne Agee CRT started coverage on Alliance Data Systems in a report on Thursday, December 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $320.00 target price on the stock. Credit Suisse started coverage on Alliance Data Systems in a report on Thursday, December 10th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $307.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on Alliance Data Systems from $325.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. The stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $303.95.

Alliance Data Systems (NYSE:ADS) traded up 0.40% during trading on Thursday, reaching $199.79. 2,661,791 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged. Alliance Data Systems has a 12 month low of $197.83 and a 12 month high of $312.00. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $262.04 and its 200-day moving average price is $272.92. The firm has a market cap of $12.21 billion and a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.03.

Alliance Data Systems (NYSE:ADS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 28th. The company reported $4.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.11 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $1.75 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.80 billion. Alliance Data Systems’s quarterly revenue was up 17.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.45 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Alliance Data Systems will post $15.03 EPS for the current year.

In other Alliance Data Systems news, EVP Bryan A. Pearson sold 4,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $273.97, for a total transaction of $1,095,880.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 19,226 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,267,347.22. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website.

Other large investors have added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Lenox Wealth Advisors increased its stake in Alliance Data Systems by 18.7% in the fourth quarter. Lenox Wealth Advisors now owns 197 shares of the company’s stock valued at $54,000 after buying an additional 31 shares during the period. Emerald Advisers Inc. PA increased its stake in Alliance Data Systems by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Emerald Advisers Inc. PA now owns 11,513 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,184,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the period. DIAM Co. Ltd. increased its stake in Alliance Data Systems by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. DIAM Co. Ltd. now owns 5,512 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,541,000 after buying an additional 68 shares during the period. Capstone Asset Management Company increased its stake in Alliance Data Systems by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Capstone Asset Management Company now owns 5,649 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,562,000 after buying an additional 92 shares during the period. Finally, Wright Investors Service Inc. increased its stake in Alliance Data Systems by 6.5% in the fourth quarter. Wright Investors Service Inc. now owns 1,645 shares of the company’s stock valued at $455,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the period.

Alliance Data Systems Corporation is a provider of data-driven marketing and loyalty solutions serving consumer-based businesses in a variety of industries. The Company operates through three segments: LoyaltyOne, which includes the Company’s Canadian AIR MILES Reward Program and BrandLoyalty; Epsilon, which provides direct marketing solutions, and Private Label Services and Credit, which provides risk management solutions, account origination, funding, transaction processing, customer care, collections and marketing services for the Company’s private label and co-brand retail credit card programs. The Company offers a portfolio of integrated outsourced marketing solutions, including customer loyalty programs, database marketing services, end-to-end marketing services, analytics and creative services, direct marketing services and private label and co-brand retail credit card programs.

12 Month Chart for NYSE:ADS

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