Banque Cantonale Vaudoise Makes New $232,000 Investment in Buckle, Inc. (The) (NYSE:BKE)

Key Points

• Banque Cantonale Vaudoise has acquired a new position in Buckle, Inc. worth approximately $232,000, securing 6,054 shares during the first quarter.
• Wall Street analysts have upgraded Buckle from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating, indicating increased confidence in the stock's future performance.
• Buckle reported $0.70 earnings per share for the latest quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations and reflecting a year-over-year revenue increase of 3.7%.

Banque Cantonale Vaudoise purchased a new position in Buckle, Inc. (The) (NYSE:BKE - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 6,054 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $232,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of BKE. Caption Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Buckle in the fourth quarter valued at $36,000. Bellwether Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Buckle in the fourth quarter worth about $43,000. State of Wyoming bought a new position in shares of Buckle in the fourth quarter worth about $111,000. Viking Fund Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Buckle in the first quarter worth about $115,000. Finally, Novem Group bought a new position in shares of Buckle in the fourth quarter worth about $227,000. 53.93% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Buckle Stock Performance

BKE stock traded up $1.94 during trading on Monday, reaching $51.17. The company had a trading volume of 451,308 shares, compared to its average volume of 533,909. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $45.93 and a 200-day simple moving average of $41.86. The company has a market cap of $2.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.15 and a beta of 1.05. Buckle, Inc. has a twelve month low of $33.12 and a twelve month high of $54.25.

Buckle (NYSE:BKE - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, May 23rd. The company reported $0.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.65 by $0.05. Buckle had a net margin of 15.95% and a return on equity of 43.13%. The company had revenue of $272.12 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $264.28 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.70 EPS. Buckle's revenue for the quarter was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year.

Buckle Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 29th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 15th were issued a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, July 15th. Buckle's payout ratio is 35.99%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently commented on BKE. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Buckle from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 23rd. UBS Group restated a "neutral" rating on shares of Buckle in a report on Wednesday, May 14th.

Insider Activity at Buckle

In related news, CEO Dennis H. Nelson sold 43,915 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.72, for a total value of $1,744,303.80. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 1,706,335 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $67,775,626.20. The trade was a 2.51% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director James E. Shada sold 10,000 shares of Buckle stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.84, for a total transaction of $498,400.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 85,352 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,253,943.68. This trade represents a 10.49% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 105,046 shares of company stock valued at $4,377,425. Insiders own 39.00% 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.