Buckle (NYSE:BKE) Sets New 12-Month High - Should You Buy?

Key Points

• Buckle, Inc. (NYSE:BKE) reached a new 52-week high of $57.85, trading with a volume of 8,051 shares, indicating strong market interest.
• Brokerages have increased Buckle’s target price, with UBS raising it from $51.00 to $54.00 and maintaining a "neutral" rating, while Wall Street Zen upgraded to a "buy" rating.
• In the latest earnings report, Buckle reported earnings per share of $0.89, beating estimates of $0.83, alongside revenue of $305.74 million, marking an 8.3% increase compared to the same quarter last year.

Shares of Buckle, Inc. (The) (NYSE:BKE - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $57.85 and last traded at $57.52, with a volume of 8051 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $57.50.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on BKE. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Buckle from $51.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, August 25th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Buckle from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, Buckle presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $54.00.

Buckle Trading Down 0.0%

The company has a 50-day moving average price of $51.01 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $43.22. The stock has a market cap of $2.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.42 and a beta of 1.02.

Buckle (NYSE:BKE - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Friday, August 22nd. The company reported $0.89 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.83 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $305.74 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $292.61 million. Buckle had a return on equity of 43.97% and a net margin of 16.12%.The business's revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.78 EPS.

Insider Buying and Selling at Buckle

In related news, Director James E. Shada sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.84, for a total transaction of $498,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 85,352 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,253,943.68. The trade was a 10.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director John P. Peetz sold 1,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.74, for a total value of $83,610.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 23,623 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,316,746.02. The trade was a 5.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 31,953 shares of company stock valued at $1,472,125. Company insiders own 39.80% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Buckle

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. New Vernon Capital Holdings II LLC increased its position in Buckle by 3,732.0% during the first quarter. New Vernon Capital Holdings II LLC now owns 671,251 shares of the company's stock worth $25,722,000 after buying an additional 653,734 shares during the period. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. boosted its stake in shares of Buckle by 515.3% in the fourth quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 294,953 shares of the company's stock valued at $14,987,000 after buying an additional 247,019 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Buckle by 180.6% in the fourth quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 284,713 shares of the company's stock valued at $14,466,000 after buying an additional 183,257 shares in the last quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC boosted its stake in shares of Buckle by 322.4% in the second quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 166,626 shares of the company's stock valued at $7,556,000 after buying an additional 127,177 shares in the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. raised its holdings in Buckle by 13.5% during the first quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,063,856 shares of the company's stock worth $40,767,000 after purchasing an additional 126,331 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 53.93% of the company's stock.

Buckle Company Profile

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.

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