Marshall Wace LLP Takes $579,000 Position in The Buckle, Inc. (NYSE:BKE)

Marshall Wace LLP purchased a new stake in The Buckle, Inc. (NYSE:BKE - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 11,400 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $579,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of BKE. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Buckle by 5.7% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,286,212 shares of the company's stock valued at $65,352,000 after purchasing an additional 69,258 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in Buckle by 12.0% during the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 937,525 shares of the company's stock valued at $47,636,000 after purchasing an additional 100,173 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Buckle by 2.1% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 815,688 shares of the company's stock worth $41,454,000 after buying an additional 16,610 shares during the last quarter. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ lifted its stake in shares of Buckle by 18.4% in the fourth quarter. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ now owns 219,700 shares of the company's stock valued at $11,257,000 after buying an additional 34,100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Teacher Retirement System of Texas grew its holdings in shares of Buckle by 442.8% during the fourth quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 190,450 shares of the company's stock valued at $9,677,000 after buying an additional 155,366 shares during the last quarter. 53.93% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Buckle

In other news, CEO Dennis H. Nelson sold 2,105 shares of Buckle stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.36, for a total value of $76,537.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,728,250 shares in the company, valued at $62,839,170. This trade represents a 0.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 76,011 shares of company stock worth $3,047,788. 39.80% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of Buckle from $43.00 to $41.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. StockNews.com downgraded Buckle from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th.

Buckle Stock Performance

NYSE:BKE traded up $0.01 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $35.66. The company's stock had a trading volume of 344,440 shares, compared to its average volume of 454,926. The Buckle, Inc. has a 12 month low of $33.12 and a 12 month high of $54.25. The firm has a market cap of $1.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.05 and a beta of 0.94. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $36.60 and a 200-day moving average of $43.86.

Buckle (NYSE:BKE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, March 14th. The company reported $1.53 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.44 by $0.09. Buckle had a net margin of 16.21% and a return on equity of 44.11%. The business had revenue of $379.20 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $378.97 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.59 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was down .8% on a year-over-year basis.

Buckle Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 29th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 15th were given a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, April 15th. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.93%. Buckle's dividend payout ratio is presently 36.08%.

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.