Buckle (NYSE:BKE) Downgraded to Hold Rating by StockNews.com

StockNews.com downgraded shares of Buckle (NYSE:BKE) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report report published on Thursday.

Separately, UBS Group upgraded Buckle from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $31.00 to $46.00 in a report on Tuesday, November 12th.

Buckle Stock Down 0.4 %

Buckle stock opened at $51.53 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $2.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.08 and a beta of 1.14. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $48.55 and a 200 day simple moving average of $43.41. Buckle has a 52 week low of $34.87 and a 52 week high of $54.25.

Buckle (NYSE:BKE) last announced its earnings results on Friday, November 22nd. The company reported $0.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.89 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $293.60 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $293.60 million. Buckle had a return on equity of 44.11% and a net margin of 16.21%. The firm’s revenue was down 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.04 earnings per share.

Buckle Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a special dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 29th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, January 15th will be issued a $2.50 dividend. This represents a yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, January 15th. Buckle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 35.53%.

Insider Activity at Buckle

In related news, CEO Dennis H. Nelson sold 20,453 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.00, for a total transaction of $879,479.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,842,999 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $79,248,957. The trade was a 1.10 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Kari G. Smith sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.29, for a total transaction of $1,045,800.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 150,554 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,872,468.66. This represents a 11.73 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 134,265 shares of company stock worth $6,414,313 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 39.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Buckle

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in BKE. Blue Trust Inc. grew its position in Buckle by 52.0% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 789 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 270 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP increased its position in shares of Buckle by 60.9% during the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 938 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 355 shares in the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC purchased a new position in Buckle in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $86,000. Signaturefd LLC lifted its position in Buckle by 38.7% in the 3rd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 2,236 shares of the company’s stock valued at $98,000 after acquiring an additional 624 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CWM LLC boosted its stake in Buckle by 85.3% during the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 3,725 shares of the company’s stock valued at $164,000 after purchasing an additional 1,715 shares during the last quarter. 53.93% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Buckle

The Buckle, Inc operates as a retailer of casual apparel, footwear, and accessories for young men and women in the United States. It markets a selection of brand name casual apparel, including denims, other casual bottoms, tops, sportswear, outerwear, accessories, and footwear, as well as private label merchandise primarily comprising BKE, Buckle Black, Salvage, Red by BKE, Daytrip, Gimmicks, Gilded Intent, FITZ + EDDI, Willow & Root, Outpost Makers, Departwest, Sterling & Stitch, Reclaim, BKE Vintage, Nova Industries, J.B.