Vanguard Group Inc. Sells 69,161 Shares of Buckle, Inc. (The) $BKE

Key Points

• Vanguard Group Inc. has reduced its stake in Buckle, Inc. by 1.7%, owning 3,884,666 shares worth $148.86 million after selling 69,161 shares in the first quarter.
• Buckle announced a quarterly dividend of $0.35 per share, which was recently paid out and represents an annualized yield of 2.5%.
• Analysts have mixed ratings for Buckle, with UBS raising its price objective from $40.00 to $51.00 and upgrading the stock from "hold" to "buy."

Vanguard Group Inc. decreased its position in Buckle, Inc. (The) (NYSE:BKE - Free Report) by 1.7% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 3,884,666 shares of the company's stock after selling 69,161 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned about 7.59% of Buckle worth $148,860,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in Buckle during the first quarter worth about $474,000. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management increased its holdings in Buckle by 36.3% during the 1st quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management now owns 13,208 shares of the company's stock valued at $506,000 after acquiring an additional 3,521 shares in the last quarter. XTX Topco Ltd purchased a new stake in Buckle in the first quarter valued at approximately $716,000. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise purchased a new stake in Buckle in the first quarter valued at approximately $232,000. Finally, GSA Capital Partners LLP grew its holdings in Buckle by 239.3% in the first quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP now owns 37,212 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,426,000 after purchasing an additional 26,245 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 53.93% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have weighed in on BKE shares. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Buckle from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 23rd. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Buckle from $51.00 to $54.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Buckle currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $54.00.

Buckle Trading Up 0.1%

NYSE:BKE traded up $0.04 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $56.22. 170,901 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 535,294. Buckle, Inc. has a one year low of $33.12 and a one year high of $57.53. The company has a market capitalization of $2.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.08 and a beta of 1.05. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $49.34 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $42.57.

Buckle (NYSE:BKE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, August 22nd. The company reported $0.89 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.83 by $0.06. Buckle had a net margin of 16.12% and a return on equity of 43.97%. The company had revenue of $305.74 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $292.61 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.78 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year.

Buckle Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 29th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 15th were given a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, July 15th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.5%. Buckle's dividend payout ratio is currently 35.99%.

Insider Transactions at Buckle

In other Buckle news, Director James E. Shada sold 10,000 shares of Buckle stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.84, for a total value of $498,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 85,352 shares in the company, valued at $4,253,943.68. The trade was a 10.49% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Dennis H. Nelson sold 20,453 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.52, for a total transaction of $890,114.56. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 1,655,204 shares in the company, valued at $72,034,478.08. The trade was a 1.22% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 39.80% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Buckle 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.