Fund 1 Investments LLC Raises Stock Holdings in J.Jill, Inc. (NYSE:JILL)

Fund 1 Investments LLC increased its position in shares of J.Jill, Inc. (NYSE:JILL - Free Report) by 48.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 298,429 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 96,982 shares during the quarter. J.Jill makes up approximately 0.7% of Fund 1 Investments LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 26th largest position. Fund 1 Investments LLC owned about 1.95% of J.Jill worth $8,243,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Divisadero Street Capital Management LP boosted its holdings in J.Jill by 6.1% in the 4th quarter. Divisadero Street Capital Management LP now owns 1,592,886 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $43,996,000 after purchasing an additional 91,545 shares during the last quarter. Royce & Associates LP raised its position in shares of J.Jill by 36.4% during the 4th quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 576,031 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $15,910,000 after buying an additional 153,568 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in J.Jill by 8.3% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 235,802 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $6,511,000 after acquiring an additional 18,061 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in J.Jill by 19.9% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 178,692 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $4,935,000 after acquiring an additional 29,640 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in J.Jill by 3.0% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 144,970 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $4,005,000 after acquiring an additional 4,208 shares during the period. 40.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

J.Jill Stock Up 3.6%

NYSE JILL traded up $0.60 on Wednesday, hitting $17.42. 41,982 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 143,342. J.Jill, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $14.37 and a fifty-two week high of $40.61. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $17.08 and a 200-day moving average price of $22.98. The company has a market cap of $266.23 million, a PE ratio of 6.16 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a quick ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67.

J.Jill (NYSE:JILL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, March 19th. The specialty retailer reported $0.32 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.22 by $0.10. J.Jill had a net margin of 6.80% and a return on equity of 71.30%. The firm had revenue of $94.75 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $142.33 million. Sell-side analysts anticipate that J.Jill, Inc. will post 3.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

J.Jill Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 16th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 2nd were issued a $0.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, April 2nd. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.84%. This is an increase from J.Jill's previous quarterly dividend of $0.07. J.Jill's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 12.12%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Telsey Advisory Group reiterated a "market perform" rating and set a $31.00 price target on shares of J.Jill in a report on Wednesday, March 19th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $38.20.

About J.Jill

J.Jill, Inc operates as an omnichannel retailer for women's apparel under the J.Jill brand in the United States. It offers apparel, footwear, and accessories, including scarves and jewelry. The company markets its products through retail stores, website, and catalogs. J.Jill, Inc was founded in 1959 and is headquartered in Quincy, Massachusetts.