Wall Street Zen Upgrades Dillard's (NYSE:DDS) to Buy

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen upgraded Dillard’s from “hold” to “buy,” although broader analyst sentiment remains cautious, with a consensus “reduce” rating and a $521.33 target price.
• Dillard’s reported quarterly EPS of $6.25, beating the $4.29 estimate, while revenue of $1.53 billion was slightly above expectations. The earnings upside was driven largely by higher margins and tariff refunds rather than significantly stronger sales.
• The stock opened at $559.68, below its 52-week high of $741.97; shares reportedly declined after results amid concerns that tariff refunds were a one-time benefit. Insiders own 34.8% of the company, while institutional investors hold 67.15%.

Dillard's (NYSE:DDS - Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities researchers at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report issued on Saturday.

A number of other analysts have also commented on the company. Weiss Ratings lowered Dillard's from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 23rd. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Dillard's from $460.00 to $465.00 and gave the company a "sell" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded shares of Dillard's from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Dillard's has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $521.33.

Dillard's Stock Performance

Shares of Dillard's stock opened at $559.68 on Friday. Dillard's has a fifty-two week low of $492.28 and a fifty-two week high of $741.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 3.03 and a quick ratio of 1.20. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.82 and a beta of 1.15. The company's 50 day moving average price is $572.30 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $587.38.

Dillard's (NYSE:DDS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 13th. The company reported $6.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.29 by $1.96. Dillard's had a net margin of 10.48% and a return on equity of 31.88%. The company had revenue of $1.53 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.52 billion. On average, equities analysts forecast that Dillard's will post 35.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Dillard's

In other news, Director J C. Watts, Jr. sold 400 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $609.18, for a total value of $243,672.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 10,150 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,183,177. This represents a 3.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 34.80% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Dillard's

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in DDS. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Dillard's by 9.1% in the 4th quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 191 shares of the company's stock worth $116,000 after purchasing an additional 16 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in Dillard's by 17.0% during the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 110 shares of the company's stock worth $67,000 after buying an additional 16 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers raised its stake in Dillard's by 4.2% during the fourth quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 399 shares of the company's stock worth $242,000 after buying an additional 16 shares during the last quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund lifted its holdings in Dillard's by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 1,729 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,048,000 after buying an additional 16 shares during the period. Finally, Virtu Financial LLC boosted its position in Dillard's by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Virtu Financial LLC now owns 1,618 shares of the company's stock valued at $981,000 after acquiring an additional 17 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.15% of the company's stock.

Key Dillard's News

Here are the key news stories impacting Dillard's this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Adjusted earnings were $6.25 per share, substantially above estimates ranging from $4.04 to $4.29 and up from $4.66 a year earlier. Higher margins and tariff refunds helped lift profitability. Dillard's Q2 Earnings Beat on Higher Margins and Tariff Refunds
• Positive Sentiment: Revenue of approximately $1.53 billion slightly exceeded the roughly $1.52 billion consensus estimate, while the company reduced debt, supporting balance-sheet strength and financial flexibility. Dillard's Quarterly Earnings Results
• Positive Sentiment: Management maintained its fiscal 2026 outlook, indicating no immediate deterioration in expectations despite a challenging retail environment. Dillard's Fiscal 2026 Outlook
• Neutral Sentiment: The sales performance was broadly in line with expectations, suggesting that the earnings upside came more from margin expansion and tariff-related refunds than from stronger-than-anticipated demand. Dillard's Q2 Key Metrics
• Negative Sentiment: Shares declined after the results, likely reflecting investor concern that tariff refunds may be a one-time benefit and that the sizable EPS beat does not necessarily indicate equivalent improvement in underlying retail demand. Dillard's Shares Fall After Earnings

Dillard's Company Profile

Dillard's, Inc NYSE: DDS, headquartered in Little Rock, Arkansas, is a U.S.-based department store chain founded by William T. Dillard in 1938. Over more than eight decades of operation, the company has grown from a single store in Nashville, Arkansas, to a prominent retailer with a national footprint. Dillard's equity is publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker DDS.

The company operates approximately 280 departmental stores across 29 states, offering a broad assortment of merchandise that includes men's and women's apparel, accessories, cosmetics, footwear, and home furnishings.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.

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