Macy's (NYSE:M) Hits New 1-Year Low - Time to Sell?

Macy's, Inc. (NYSE:M - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $11.01 and last traded at $11.45, with a volume of 7943083 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $11.43.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently commented on M shares. Benchmark upgraded shares of Macy's to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Morgan Stanley set a $14.00 target price on Macy's in a report on Monday, March 10th. Barclays initiated coverage on Macy's in a report on Monday, April 28th. They issued a "cautious" rating and a $12.00 price target for the company. Cowen reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Macy's in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Macy's from $14.00 to $13.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $14.18.

Macy's Stock Up 2.5 %

The firm has a market cap of $3.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.25 and a beta of 1.77. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $12.43 and its 200 day moving average price is $14.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 0.17.

Macy's (NYSE:M - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, March 6th. The company reported $1.80 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.55 by $0.25. Macy's had a return on equity of 21.99% and a net margin of 0.73%. The company had revenue of $7.77 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.76 billion. On average, equities research analysts expect that Macy's, Inc. will post 2.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Macy's Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th were paid a dividend of $0.1824 per share. This represents a $0.73 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.11%. This is a positive change from Macy's's previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. Macy's's payout ratio is presently 35.44%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Antony Spring sold 3,124 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.74, for a total value of $42,923.76. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 272,680 shares in the company, valued at $3,746,623.20. This represents a 1.13 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Tracy M. Preston sold 2,780 shares of Macy's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.68, for a total value of $35,250.40. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 4,723 shares in the company, valued at approximately $59,887.64. The trade was a 37.05 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 41,751 shares of company stock valued at $537,790 in the last three months. 1.09% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Macy's

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Virtu Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of Macy's in the third quarter valued at $594,000. HB Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Macy's by 724.1% during the fourth quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 103,584 shares of the company's stock worth $1,754,000 after purchasing an additional 91,015 shares during the period. Retirement Systems of Alabama lifted its holdings in shares of Macy's by 57.9% during the third quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 782,391 shares of the company's stock valued at $12,276,000 after purchasing an additional 286,879 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its position in shares of Macy's by 1,076.9% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 178,778 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,027,000 after purchasing an additional 163,587 shares during the period. Finally, State of Alaska Department of Revenue increased its stake in Macy's by 155.8% in the 4th quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 81,626 shares of the company's stock worth $1,381,000 after purchasing an additional 49,715 shares in the last quarter. 87.36% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Macy's

Macy's, Inc engages in the retail of apparel, accessories, cosmetics, home furnishings, and other consumer goods. The firm's brands include Macy's, Bloomingdale's, and Bluemercury. It offers men's, women's, and children's apparel, women's accessories, intimate apparel, shoes, cosmetics, fragrances, as well as home and miscellaneous products.