Big Lots (NYSE:BIG) Lifted to Hold at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Big Lots (NYSE:BIG) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research note issued to investors on Saturday morning.

Separately, Telsey Advisory Group reiterated a market perform rating and issued a $2.50 price objective on shares of Big Lots in a research report on Friday, June 14th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and two have issued a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Big Lots has a consensus rating of Reduce and a consensus target price of $4.60.

Big Lots Stock Performance

Shares of Big Lots stock opened at $1.79 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $3.16 and its 200-day simple moving average is $4.62. Big Lots has a 12 month low of $1.72 and a 12 month high of $11.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 7.05, a current ratio of 1.39 and a quick ratio of 0.16. The stock has a market capitalization of $53.13 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -0.11 and a beta of 2.28.

Big Lots (NYSE:BIG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, June 6th. The company reported ($4.51) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($4.23) by ($0.28). Big Lots had a negative net margin of 10.44% and a negative return on equity of 147.35%. The firm had revenue of $1.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.04 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned ($3.40) earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 10.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Big Lots will post -11.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Big Lots

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in BIG. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its position in shares of Big Lots by 46.7% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 37,421 shares of the company’s stock worth $163,000 after buying an additional 11,915 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Big Lots by 3.7% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,598,679 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,922,000 after buying an additional 56,540 shares in the last quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System purchased a new stake in shares of Big Lots in the 1st quarter worth about $54,000. GSA Capital Partners LLP boosted its position in shares of Big Lots by 244.7% in the 1st quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP now owns 461,188 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,997,000 after buying an additional 327,397 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its position in shares of Big Lots by 84.9% in the 1st quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 124,991 shares of the company’s stock worth $541,000 after buying an additional 57,402 shares in the last quarter. 75.96% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Big Lots

Big Lots, Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates as a home discount retailer in the United States. The company offers products under various merchandising categories, such as furniture category that includes upholstery, mattresses, home décor, case goods, and ready-to-assemble departments; seasonal category, which comprises patio furniture, gazebos, Christmas trim, lawn and garden, and other holiday departments; soft home category consists of apparel, hosiery, jewelry; frames, fashion and utility bedding, bath, window, decorative textiles, and area rugs departments; and food category that includes beverages and grocery, specialty foods, and candy and snacks departments.