JD Sports Fashion (LON:JD) Cut to Hold at Shore Capital Group

Key Points

• Shore Capital downgraded JD Sports Fashion to “hold” and lowered its price target from GBX 81 to GBX 75, implying 7.25% downside from the prior close.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed but leans toward caution: three analysts rate the stock “buy” and six rate it “hold,” producing an overall consensus rating of “hold.”
• JD Sports reported quarterly EPS of GBX 3.97, with a 3.17% net margin and 14.97% return on equity. Insider Peter Agnefjäl also purchased 320,000 shares for approximately £246,400.

JD Sports Fashion (LON:JD - Get Free Report) was downgraded by Shore Capital Group to a "hold" rating in a note issued to investors on Friday, London Stock Exchange reports. They presently have a GBX 75 target price on the stock, down from their prior target price of GBX 81. Shore Capital Group's price objective suggests a potential downside of 7.25% from the company's previous close.

A number of other analysts have also commented on JD. Citigroup boosted their price objective on JD Sports Fashion from GBX 83 to GBX 87 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, August 21st. Berenberg Bank restated a "buy" rating and issued a GBX 150 target price on shares of JD Sports Fashion in a report on Thursday, September 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a "hold" rating and set a GBX 95 target price on shares of JD Sports Fashion in a research report on Thursday, September 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on JD Sports Fashion from GBX 90 to GBX 86 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 21st. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reissued a "sector perform" rating and issued a GBX 100 price target on shares of JD Sports Fashion in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, JD Sports Fashion presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of GBX 191.89.

JD Sports Fashion Price Performance

Shares of LON JD opened at GBX 80.86 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of £4.19 billion, a PE ratio of 808.60, a P/E/G ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 1.65. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is GBX 85.16 and its 200-day simple moving average is GBX 80.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 133.23, a current ratio of 1.42 and a quick ratio of 0.71.

JD Sports Fashion (LON:JD - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, September 23rd. The company reported GBX 3.97 EPS for the quarter. JD Sports Fashion had a net margin of 3.17% and a return on equity of 14.97%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that JD Sports Fashion will post 15.037961 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other JD Sports Fashion news, insider Peter Agnefjäl bought 320,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 25th. The shares were bought at an average cost of GBX 77 per share, for a total transaction of £246,400. 51.91% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

About JD Sports Fashion

JD Sports Fashion plc engages in the retail of branded sports fashion and outdoor clothing, footwear, accessories, and equipment for kids, women, and men. It operates through Sports Fashion and Outdoor segments. The company also retails leisure goods, sports goods, fishing gear, camping goods, boats, and bicycles, as well as distributes sports apparel and accessories, footwear, and apparel. It offers its products under the JD, Size?, Footpatrol, Finish Line, Shoe Palace, DTLR, Livestock, Sprinter, Sport Zone, Sizeer, JD Gyms, Tessuti, Scotts, Go Outdoors, Blacks, Millets, Tiso, Ultimate Outdoors, Fishing Republic, and Naylors brands.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.