Signet Jewelers (NYSE:SIG) Shares Gap Up After Strong Earnings

Signet Jewelers Limited (NYSE:SIG - Get Free Report)'s share price gapped up before the market opened on Tuesday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $66.81, but opened at $77.94. Signet Jewelers shares last traded at $74.68, with a volume of 1,172,328 shares trading hands.

The company reported $1.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.01 by $0.17. Signet Jewelers had a net margin of 8.57% and a return on equity of 28.69%. The firm had revenue of $1.54 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.52 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.11 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year.

Signet Jewelers Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 22nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 25th will be given a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.72%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 25th. Signet Jewelers's payout ratio is currently -168.42%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently commented on SIG shares. Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of Signet Jewelers from $65.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Telsey Advisory Group lifted their price objective on shares of Signet Jewelers from $62.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Signet Jewelers from $84.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday. CL King assumed coverage on shares of Signet Jewelers in a research note on Monday, May 5th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $80.00 target price for the company. Finally, Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Signet Jewelers from $85.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Signet Jewelers presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $84.67.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Signet Jewelers news, Director Helen Mccluskey acquired 1,700 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, April 25th. The stock was bought at an average price of $58.86 per share, for a total transaction of $100,062.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 31,916 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,878,575.76. The trade was a 5.63% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO James Kevin Symancyk acquired 15,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 31st. The stock was acquired at an average price of $57.45 per share, with a total value of $861,750.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 50,710 shares in the company, valued at $2,913,289.50. The trade was a 42.01% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 1.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Signet Jewelers

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of SIG. Brooklyn Investment Group increased its holdings in shares of Signet Jewelers by 42,700.0% during the 1st quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 428 shares of the company's stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 427 shares during the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP raised its stake in Signet Jewelers by 946.8% during the 1st quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 492 shares of the company's stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 445 shares in the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new stake in Signet Jewelers during the 1st quarter worth $36,000. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its stake in Signet Jewelers by 40.5% during the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 773 shares of the company's stock worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 223 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Byrne Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Signet Jewelers in the first quarter valued at $45,000.

Signet Jewelers Trading Down 1.1%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 1.55 and a quick ratio of 0.25. The company has a market capitalization of $3.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.43 and a beta of 1.34. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $60.78 and its 200 day simple moving average is $65.93.

About Signet Jewelers

Signet Jewelers Limited operates as a diamond jewelry retailer. It operates through three segments: North America, International, and Other. The North America segment operates jewelry stores in jewelry stores in malls, mall-based kiosks, and off-mall locations in the United States and Canada primarily under the Kay Jewelers, Kay Jewelers Outlet, Jared The Galleria Of Jewelry, Jared Vault, Zales Outlet, Zales Jewelers, Diamonds Direct, James Allen, Banter by Piercing Pagoda, and Peoples Jewellers names, as well as operates online through its digital banners, James Allen and Blue Nile.