Bank of America Corp DE Acquires 193,876 Shares of Barnes & Noble Education, Inc $BNED

Key Points

• Bank of America more than doubled its Barnes & Noble Education stake in the first quarter, acquiring 193,876 additional shares for a total holding of 355,943 shares, worth approximately $3.14 million.
• Institutional investors own 38.51% of BNED, while company insiders own 1.70%; insiders sold 10,513 shares worth $129,173 over the past 90 days.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed, with a consensus “Hold” rating and a $17.25 price target. BNED recently exceeded quarterly EPS estimates and pays a $0.08 quarterly dividend, yielding about 2.7%.

Bank of America Corp DE lifted its holdings in shares of Barnes & Noble Education, Inc (NYSE:BNED - Free Report) by 119.6% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 355,943 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after acquiring an additional 193,876 shares during the quarter. Bank of America Corp DE owned approximately 1.04% of Barnes & Noble Education worth $3,143,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its position in shares of Barnes & Noble Education by 261.1% in the 4th quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 3,972 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 2,872 shares in the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd grew its position in Barnes & Noble Education by 205.5% during the 4th quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 4,326 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 2,910 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. purchased a new stake in Barnes & Noble Education during the 2nd quarter valued at about $96,000. Copeland Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Barnes & Noble Education during the 1st quarter valued at about $73,000. Finally, New York State Common Retirement Fund bought a new stake in Barnes & Noble Education during the 2nd quarter valued at about $100,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 38.51% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Barnes & Noble Education

In related news, CFO Jason Snagusky sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.64, for a total value of $63,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 71,762 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $907,071.68. This trade represents a 6.51% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders have sold 10,513 shares of company stock valued at $129,173 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 1.70% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BNED has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Needham & Company LLC upgraded Barnes & Noble Education from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $16.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Friday, June 26th. Zacks Research upgraded Barnes & Noble Education to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 11th. Northland Securities set a $18.50 price target on Barnes & Noble Education in a report on Friday, June 26th. Weiss Ratings raised Barnes & Noble Education from a "sell (e+)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Barnes & Noble Education from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, August 8th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Barnes & Noble Education currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $17.25.

Barnes & Noble Education Price Performance

NYSE BNED opened at $11.96 on Monday. The business's fifty day moving average is $12.31 and its 200 day moving average is $10.51. Barnes & Noble Education, Inc has a fifty-two week low of $5.90 and a fifty-two week high of $14.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a current ratio of 1.71. The company has a market capitalization of $414.65 million, a PE ratio of 25.45 and a beta of 1.27.

Barnes & Noble Education (NYSE:BNED - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 9th. The specialty retailer reported $0.10 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.07 by $0.03. Barnes & Noble Education had a net margin of 0.98% and a return on equity of 7.92%. The company had revenue of $267.10 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $267.55 million. Sell-side analysts predict that Barnes & Noble Education, Inc will post 0.71 earnings per share for the current year.

Barnes & Noble Education Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 30th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 16th were given a dividend of $0.08 per share. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 16th. Barnes & Noble Education's dividend payout ratio is currently 68.09%.

Barnes & Noble Education Company Profile

Barnes & Noble Education, Inc NYSE: BNED is a leading provider of educational products and services to the higher education community. The company operates retail campus bookstores under Barnes & Noble College, offering course materials, general merchandise, and digital content. In addition, Barnes & Noble Education delivers educational technology solutions through its digital learning platform and supplemental courseware.

Originally part of Barnes & Noble, Inc, the company completed its spin-off and initial public offering in February 2015 to focus exclusively on college retail and digital learning.

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