Insider Selling: The Buckle, Inc. (NYSE:BKE) CEO Sells 20,453 Shares of Stock

The Buckle, Inc. (NYSE:BKE) CEO Dennis H. Nelson sold 20,453 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.57, for a total transaction of $1,054,761.21. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,739,734 shares in the company, valued at approximately $89,718,082.38. The trade was a 1.16 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

Buckle Stock Down 1.1 %

Shares of BKE opened at $50.20 on Thursday. The Buckle, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $34.87 and a fifty-two week high of $54.25. The company’s fifty day moving average is $49.82 and its two-hundred day moving average is $44.21. The firm has a market cap of $2.55 billion, a PE ratio of 12.74 and a beta of 1.15.

Buckle (NYSE:BKE) last issued its earnings results on Friday, November 22nd. The company reported $0.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.89 by ($0.01). Buckle had a return on equity of 44.11% and a net margin of 16.21%. The firm had revenue of $293.60 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $293.60 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.04 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year.

Buckle Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a special dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 29th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, January 15th will be given a $2.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, January 15th. This represents a yield of 2.6%. Buckle’s payout ratio is currently 35.53%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on BKE shares. StockNews.com raised shares of Buckle from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. UBS Group raised shares of Buckle from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $31.00 to $46.00 in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Buckle

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Impala Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Buckle by 43.3% in the 3rd quarter. Impala Asset Management LLC now owns 365,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $16,049,000 after buying an additional 110,273 shares during the period. Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. bought a new stake in shares of Buckle during the third quarter valued at approximately $4,753,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Buckle by 4.5% during the second quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 2,100,398 shares of the company’s stock valued at $77,589,000 after purchasing an additional 90,190 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in Buckle by 14.0% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 716,090 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,452,000 after purchasing an additional 87,690 shares during the period. Finally, State Street Corp grew its position in Buckle by 5.7% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,338,395 shares of the company’s stock valued at $58,849,000 after buying an additional 72,532 shares in the last quarter. 53.93% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Buckle Company 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.