Asset Management One Co. Ltd. Trims Holdings in Buckle, Inc. (The) $BKE

Key Points

• Asset Management One cut its stake in Buckle by 44.3% in Q4, selling 20,087 shares and leaving 25,282 shares valued at about $1.36 million.
• Company insiders have sold a total of 126,200 shares (~$6.52 million) over the last 90 days — including SVP Michelle Hoffman (16,200 shares) and EVP Kari G. Smith (30,000 shares) — while insiders still own 39% of the company.
• Buckle beat quarterly estimates with $1.59 EPS and $399.14 million in revenue (up 5.2% y/y), declared a $0.35 quarterly dividend (2.5% yield), and trades at a P/E of 13.61 with a market cap around $2.9 billion.

Asset Management One Co. Ltd. trimmed its holdings in shares of Buckle, Inc. (The) (NYSE:BKE - Free Report) by 44.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 25,282 shares of the company's stock after selling 20,087 shares during the quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd.'s holdings in Buckle were worth $1,362,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. raised its holdings 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 valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 617 shares in the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Buckle by 81.6% in the 3rd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 463 shares of the company's stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 208 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Buckle by 162.2% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 957 shares of the company's stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 592 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in shares of Buckle in the 3rd quarter valued at about $65,000. Finally, Quadrant Capital Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Buckle in the 3rd quarter valued at about $74,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 53.93% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BKE has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Wall Street Zen cut Buckle from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, April 4th. UBS Group lowered their price target on Buckle from $55.00 to $53.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 16th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Buckle from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Friday, March 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Buckle presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $53.00.

Buckle Trading Up 0.7%

BKE opened at $56.35 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $52.19 and a 200-day moving average price of $53.72. Buckle, Inc. has a 12-month low of $34.04 and a 12-month high of $61.69. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.61 and a beta of 1.18.

Buckle (NYSE:BKE - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, March 13th. The company reported $1.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.51 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $399.14 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $396.45 million. Buckle had a return on equity of 45.18% and a net margin of 16.16%.The company's revenue for the quarter was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.53 EPS.

Buckle Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 29th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 15th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.5%. Buckle's dividend payout ratio is currently 33.82%.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Michelle Hoffman sold 16,200 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.80, for a total transaction of $887,760.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 29,682 shares in the company, valued at $1,626,573.60. This represents a 35.31% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Kari G. Smith sold 30,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.57, for a total value of $1,637,100.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 83,814 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,573,729.98. This represents a 26.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 126,200 shares of company stock valued at $6,517,932 over the last 90 days. 39.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About Buckle

Buckle, Inc is a retailer specializing in casual apparel, footwear and accessories for young men and women. The company is known for its denim-focused collections, offering both private-label lines and curated brand-name merchandise. Its product assortment includes jeans, tops, outerwear, shoes and a variety of accessories such as belts, jewelry and handbags, all aimed at blending contemporary style with everyday comfort.

Founded in 1948 in Kearney, Nebraska, Buckle began as a single clothing store and has since expanded into a nationwide chain.

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