J.Jill (NYSE:JILL) Posts Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.09 EPS

Key Points

• J.Jill reported earnings of $0.81 per share, exceeding analysts' expectations of $0.72 by $0.09, along with revenue of $153.99 million surpassing estimates.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.08 per share, which represents an annualized yield of 1.9%.
• Institutional investors have increased their holdings in J.Jill, with notable increases from companies like Paradigm Capital Management and Marshall Wace LLP.

J.Jill (NYSE:JILL - Get Free Report) posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday. The specialty retailer reported $0.81 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.72 by $0.09, Zacks reports. The company had revenue of $153.99 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $148.02 million. J.Jill had a return on equity of 41.85% and a net margin of 6.12%.

J.Jill Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE JILL traded up $0.44 during trading on Friday, reaching $18.02. 175,521 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 110,156. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $15.96 and a 200-day simple moving average of $16.84. The company has a quick ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The stock has a market capitalization of $274.51 million, a PE ratio of 7.54 and a beta of 0.75. J.Jill has a 52-week low of $13.36 and a 52-week high of $30.40.

J.Jill Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.08 per share. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, September 17th. J.Jill's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 13.39%.

Institutional Trading of J.Jill

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Paradigm Capital Management Inc. NY boosted its holdings in shares of J.Jill by 13.5% during the 2nd quarter. Paradigm Capital Management Inc. NY now owns 1,057,300 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $15,479,000 after acquiring an additional 125,838 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of J.Jill by 11.9% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 175,286 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $2,567,000 after buying an additional 18,576 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP lifted its holdings in shares of J.Jill by 931.8% during the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 147,892 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $2,165,000 after buying an additional 133,558 shares during the period. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of J.Jill by 15.5% during the 2nd quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 105,658 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $1,547,000 after buying an additional 14,152 shares during the period. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of J.Jill by 3.7% during the 2nd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 23,682 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $347,000 after buying an additional 840 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 40.71% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently weighed in on JILL shares. TD Cowen upped their price target on J.Jill from $16.00 to $17.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday. BTIG Research set a $30.00 price target on J.Jill and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 11th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of J.Jill from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, August 15th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on shares of J.Jill from $22.00 to $20.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group restated a "market perform" rating and set a $17.00 price objective on shares of J.Jill in a research note on Wednesday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, J.Jill currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $21.00.

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.