Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Acquires 139,109 Shares of Signet Jewelers Limited (NYSE:SIG)

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in shares of Signet Jewelers Limited (NYSE:SIG - Free Report) by 5.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,550,233 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 139,109 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned 5.86% of Signet Jewelers worth $205,830,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in SIG. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Signet Jewelers by 149.3% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 703 shares of the company's stock valued at $57,000 after acquiring an additional 421 shares in the last quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Signet Jewelers by 832.9% in the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 1,362 shares of the company's stock valued at $110,000 after purchasing an additional 1,216 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC grew its stake in Signet Jewelers by 32.9% in the fourth quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 1,656 shares of the company's stock valued at $123,000 after purchasing an additional 410 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV increased its position in shares of Signet Jewelers by 34.6% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,740 shares of the company's stock worth $140,000 after purchasing an additional 447 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Signet Jewelers in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $210,000.

Signet Jewelers Stock Performance

SIG traded down $0.27 on Monday, reaching $58.78. The company had a trading volume of 107,333 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,152,103. The stock has a market cap of $2.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.78, a P/E/G ratio of 3.43 and a beta of 1.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a current ratio of 1.55. Signet Jewelers Limited has a fifty-two week low of $45.55 and a fifty-two week high of $112.06. The company's fifty day moving average is $54.26 and its 200 day moving average is $71.67.

Signet Jewelers (NYSE:SIG - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, March 19th. The company reported $6.62 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.39 by $0.23. The company had revenue of $2.35 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.33 billion. Signet Jewelers had a return on equity of 28.69% and a net margin of 8.57%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $6.73 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Signet Jewelers Limited will post 8.73 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Signet Jewelers Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 23rd. Investors of record on Friday, April 25th will be paid a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 25th. This is an increase from Signet Jewelers's previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.18%. Signet Jewelers's dividend payout ratio is -168.42%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO James Kevin Symancyk bought 15,000 shares of Signet Jewelers stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 31st. The shares were bought at an average cost of $57.45 per share, with a total value of $861,750.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 50,710 shares in the company, valued at $2,913,289.50. This trade represents a 42.01 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Eugenia Ulasewicz sold 3,333 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.13, for a total value of $180,415.29. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 22,752 shares in the company, valued at $1,231,565.76. The trade was a 12.78 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 3.26% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have issued reports on SIG. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Signet Jewelers from $85.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Cfra Research raised shares of Signet Jewelers to a "moderate buy" rating in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Bank of America reduced their price target on Signet Jewelers from $95.00 to $65.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. Telsey Advisory Group restated a "market perform" rating and issued a $55.00 price objective on shares of Signet Jewelers in a research note on Wednesday, March 19th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an "equal weight" rating and issued a $70.00 price objective (down from $80.00) on shares of Signet Jewelers in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $79.60.

Signet Jewelers Company Profile

Signet Jewelers Limited operates as a diamond jewelry retailer. It operates through three segments: North America, International, and Other. The North America segment operates jewelry stores in jewelry stores in malls, mall-based kiosks, and off-mall locations in the United States and Canada primarily under the Kay Jewelers, Kay Jewelers Outlet, Jared The Galleria Of Jewelry, Jared Vault, Zales Outlet, Zales Jewelers, Diamonds Direct, James Allen, Banter by Piercing Pagoda, and Peoples Jewellers names, as well as operates online through its digital banners, James Allen and Blue Nile.