Wall Street Zen Upgrades Buckle (NYSE:BKE) to "Buy"

Key Points

• Buckle (NYSE:BKE) has been upgraded from a "hold" to a "buy" rating by Wall Street Zen, indicating increased investor confidence.
• UBS Group raised the price target for Buckle from $51.00 to $54.00, suggesting it may be a stable investment with a current consensus rating of "Hold."
• Buckle reported a quarterly EPS of $0.89, exceeding analysts’ expectations and showing an 8.3% revenue increase year-over-year, totaling $305.74 million.

Buckle (NYSE:BKE - Get Free Report) was upgraded by analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report issued on Saturday.

Separately, UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Buckle from $51.00 to $54.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, August 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $54.00.

Buckle Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:BKE traded up $1.72 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $61.52. The stock had a trading volume of 484,807 shares, compared to its average volume of 539,044. Buckle has a 1 year low of $33.12 and a 1 year high of $61.62. The firm's 50 day moving average is $52.90 and its 200-day moving average is $44.04. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.38 and a beta of 1.02.

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Buckle

In other news, Director James E. Shada sold 20,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, September 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $59.49, for a total value of $1,189,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 55,352 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,292,890.48. This trade represents a 26.54% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Kari G. Smith sold 20,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $59.36, for a total transaction of $1,187,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 150,354 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,925,013.44. This trade represents a 11.74% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 57,500 shares of company stock worth $3,320,030 in the last quarter. 39.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Buckle

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Buckle by 1,928.1% in the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 649 shares of the company's stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 617 shares during the period. Allworth Financial LP lifted its stake in shares of Buckle by 1,652.3% in the 2nd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 771 shares of the company's stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 727 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Buckle by 162.2% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 957 shares of the company's stock worth $43,000 after acquiring an additional 592 shares during the period. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Buckle by 64.9% in the 2nd quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 999 shares of the company's stock worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 393 shares during the period. Finally, State of Wyoming acquired a new stake in shares of Buckle in the 4th quarter worth $111,000. 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.