Buckle (NYSE:BKE) Stock Rating Upgraded by StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Buckle (NYSE:BKE) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note issued to investors on Monday morning.

Separately, UBS Group cut their price target on Buckle from $34.00 to $32.00 and set a sell rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 15th.

Buckle Stock Down 1.3 %

Shares of Buckle stock opened at $36.26 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.55 and a beta of 1.18. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $37.28 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $39.21. Buckle has a 12-month low of $30.31 and a 12-month high of $48.15.

Buckle (NYSE:BKE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, May 24th. The company reported $0.69 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.74 by ($0.05). Buckle had a return on equity of 48.21% and a net margin of 17.07%. The business had revenue of $262.50 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $262.50 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.86 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year.

Buckle Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 26th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 12th. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.86%. Buckle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 33.02%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Hancock Whitney Corp raised its stake in shares of Buckle by 3.7% in the first quarter. Hancock Whitney Corp now owns 15,094 shares of the company’s stock valued at $608,000 after purchasing an additional 533 shares in the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC raised its stake in shares of Buckle by 18.5% in the first quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 36,415 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,466,000 after purchasing an additional 5,686 shares in the last quarter. Caxton Associates LP acquired a new position in shares of Buckle in the first quarter valued at $804,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its stake in shares of Buckle by 14.3% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 8,734 shares of the company’s stock valued at $352,000 after purchasing an additional 1,096 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BOKF NA acquired a new position in shares of Buckle in the first quarter valued at $274,000. 53.93% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Buckle

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.