Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership Purchases 37,871 Shares of Dillard's, Inc. $DDS

Key Points

• Arrowstreet Capital increased its Dillard’s stake by 1,331.6% in the first quarter, acquiring 37,871 additional shares for a total holding valued at approximately $23.3 million. Institutional investors collectively own 67.15% of the company.
• Dillard’s reported a strong quarter, with earnings per share of $16.04 versus the $10.13 consensus estimate and revenue of $1.59 billion, up 2.7% year over year. The company declared a $0.30 quarterly dividend, equivalent to a 0.2% yield.
• Analyst sentiment has weakened, with several firms downgrading the stock to “hold” and UBS maintaining a “sell” rating. The consensus rating is “Reduce,” with an average price target of $521.33, below the reported share price of $587.47.

Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its position in Dillard's, Inc. (NYSE:DDS - Free Report) by 1,331.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 40,715 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 37,871 shares during the quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership owned approximately 0.26% of Dillard's worth $23,293,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its holdings in shares of Dillard's by 28,394.2% during the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 226,529 shares of the company's stock valued at $137,354,000 after acquiring an additional 225,734 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Dillard's in the 4th quarter worth about $36,598,000. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. bought a new stake in shares of Dillard's during the 3rd quarter valued at about $31,813,000. Man Group plc increased its position in shares of Dillard's by 464.3% during the third quarter. Man Group plc now owns 38,806 shares of the company's stock valued at $23,846,000 after buying an additional 31,929 shares during the period. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its stake in Dillard's by 75.6% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 66,142 shares of the company's stock worth $23,687,000 after buying an additional 28,468 shares in the last quarter. 67.15% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Dillard's

In related news, Director J C. Watts, Jr. sold 400 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $609.18, for a total transaction of $243,672.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 10,150 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,183,177. This represents a 3.79% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 34.80% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Dillard's Stock Down 0.3%

Shares of NYSE:DDS opened at $587.47 on Thursday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $566.02 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $591.22. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.97 and a beta of 1.15. Dillard's, Inc. has a 12-month low of $449.64 and a 12-month high of $741.97. The company has a current ratio of 2.37, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21.

Dillard's (NYSE:DDS - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 14th. The company reported $16.04 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $10.13 by $5.91. Dillard's had a return on equity of 31.43% and a net margin of 10.09%.The firm had revenue of $1.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.55 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $10.39 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that Dillard's, Inc. will post 35.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Dillard's Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 3rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be paid a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 30th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.2%. Dillard's's payout ratio is presently 2.85%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have weighed in on DDS shares. Zacks Research cut Dillard's from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday. Weiss Ratings cut Dillard's from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 23rd. Wall Street Zen cut Dillard's from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, July 20th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on Dillard's from $460.00 to $465.00 and gave the company a "sell" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Reduce" and an average target price of $521.33.

About Dillard's

Dillard's, Inc NYSE: DDS, headquartered in Little Rock, Arkansas, is a U.S.-based department store chain founded by William T. Dillard in 1938. Over more than eight decades of operation, the company has grown from a single store in Nashville, Arkansas, to a prominent retailer with a national footprint. Dillard's equity is publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker DDS.

The company operates approximately 280 departmental stores across 29 states, offering a broad assortment of merchandise that includes men's and women's apparel, accessories, cosmetics, footwear, and home furnishings.

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