Buckle (NYSE:BKE) Cut to “Hold” at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Buckle (NYSE:BKE) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note published on Sunday.

A number of other research firms also recently commented on BKE. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Buckle in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Buckle in a research note on Monday, November 24th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $55.00.

Buckle Stock Up 0.2%

Shares of NYSE BKE opened at $57.19 on Friday. Buckle has a twelve month low of $33.12 and a twelve month high of $61.69. The firm has a market cap of $2.93 billion, a PE ratio of 14.02 and a beta of 1.14. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $55.75 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $53.28.

Buckle (NYSE:BKE) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 21st. The company reported $0.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.94 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $320.84 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $317.97 million. Buckle had a return on equity of 44.42% and a net margin of 16.13%.The business’s revenue was up 9.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.88 EPS.

Buckle Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a special dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 29th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 15th will be issued a $3.00 dividend. This represents a yield of 248.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, January 15th. Buckle’s payout ratio is currently 34.31%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. increased its position in Buckle by 1.1% during the 2nd quarter. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. now owns 18,204 shares of the company’s stock valued at $826,000 after buying an additional 190 shares in the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Buckle by 81.6% during the third quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 463 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 208 shares in the last quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of Buckle by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC now owns 11,215 shares of the company’s stock valued at $658,000 after purchasing an additional 218 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in Buckle by 0.9% in the 2nd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 26,453 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,200,000 after purchasing an additional 230 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in Buckle by 7.6% during the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,371 shares of the company’s stock worth $198,000 after purchasing an additional 237 shares during the last quarter. 53.93% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.