BNP Paribas Financial Markets Increases Stake in Dillard's, Inc. $DDS

Key Points

• BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its Dillard’s stake by 45.5% in the fourth quarter, ending with 33,566 shares valued at about $20.35 million. Several other institutional investors also added to or initiated positions, and institutions now own 67.15% of the stock.
• Dillard’s reported a strong quarterly beat, posting $16.04 EPS versus expectations of $10.13 and revenue of $1.59 billion, above estimates. Revenue rose 2.7% year over year, and analysts now expect full-year EPS of 35.26.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.30 per share, payable August 3, implying an annualized yield of about 0.2%. Despite the earnings strength, Wall Street’s overall view remains cautious, with a consensus rating of Hold and an average price target of $521.33.

BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its holdings in Dillard's, Inc. (NYSE:DDS - Free Report) by 45.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 33,566 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 10,502 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets owned approximately 0.21% of Dillard's worth $20,352,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in Dillard's during the 3rd quarter valued at $33,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC boosted its position in Dillard's by 6,300.0% during the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 64 shares of the company's stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 63 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in Dillard's by 790.0% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 89 shares of the company's stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 79 shares during the period. Torren Management LLC purchased a new stake in Dillard's during the 4th quarter valued at $68,000. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its position in Dillard's by 43.8% during the 3rd quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 128 shares of the company's stock valued at $79,000 after buying an additional 39 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.15% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director J C. Watts, Jr. sold 400 shares of Dillard's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 owned 10,150 shares in the company, valued at $6,183,177. This trade represents a 3.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 34.80% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently commented on DDS. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Dillard's from $460.00 to $465.00 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Telsey Advisory Group dropped their target price on shares of Dillard's from $700.00 to $650.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Dillard's from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, March 28th. Zacks Research raised shares of Dillard's from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 29th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Dillard's in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $521.33.

Dillard's Stock Performance

DDS opened at $605.27 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.65, a quick ratio of 1.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. The company has a market cap of $9.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.39 and a beta of 1.16. The company's 50 day moving average is $577.24 and its 200 day moving average is $616.22. Dillard's, Inc. has a 12-month low of $394.70 and a 12-month high of $741.97.

Dillard's (NYSE:DDS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 14th. The company reported $16.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $10.13 by $5.91. The company had revenue of $1.59 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.55 billion. Dillard's had a net margin of 10.09% and a return on equity of 31.89%. The firm's revenue was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $10.39 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Dillard's, Inc. will post 35.26 EPS for the current year.

Dillard's Announces Dividend

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

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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