J.Jill, Inc. (NYSE:JILL) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

J.Jill, Inc. (NYSE:JILL) saw a significant growth in short interest in December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 378,000 shares, a growth of 6.0% from the November 30th total of 356,600 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 127,800 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.0 days. Approximately 5.4% of the company’s shares are short sold.

J.Jill Stock Down 1.5 %

JILL stock opened at $27.20 on Friday. J.Jill has a twelve month low of $23.06 and a twelve month high of $40.61. The company has a market cap of $417.25 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.61 and a beta of 0.64. The company has a quick ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $26.33 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $29.50.

J.Jill Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 9th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, December 26th will be given a dividend of $0.07 per share. This represents a $0.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.03%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, December 26th. J.Jill’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 9.89%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Mark W. Webb sold 6,740 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.54, for a total value of $192,359.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 97,188 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,773,745.52. This represents a 6.49 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Claire Spofford sold 6,601 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.75, for a total value of $189,778.75. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 161,812 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,652,095. This trade represents a 3.92 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 18,341 shares of company stock worth $517,038 over the last ninety days. 6.70% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of J.Jill

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC acquired a new stake in shares of J.Jill in the second quarter valued at approximately $81,000. Ritholtz Wealth Management lifted its holdings in J.Jill by 2.3% during the 2nd quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 13,664 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $478,000 after purchasing an additional 312 shares during the last quarter. Privium Fund Management UK Ltd bought a new position in J.Jill during the second quarter worth $1,097,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of J.Jill in the second quarter valued at $301,000. Finally, Anchor Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of J.Jill in the second quarter valued at about $1,020,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 40.71% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on JILL shares. Telsey Advisory Group reissued a “market perform” rating and issued a $31.00 target price on shares of J.Jill in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. TD Cowen lowered their price objective on shares of J.Jill from $37.00 to $32.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, September 5th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $38.17.

About J.Jill

J.Jill, Inc operates as an omnichannel retailer for women's apparel under the J.Jill brand in the United States. It offers apparel, footwear, and accessories, including scarves and jewelry. The company markets its products through retail stores, website, and catalogs. J.Jill, Inc was founded in 1959 and is headquartered in Quincy, Massachusetts.