Buckle (NYSE:BKE) Upgraded to “Buy” by StockNews.com

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

Separately, UBS Group cut shares of Buckle from a neutral rating to a sell rating and decreased their price target for the company from $37.00 to $34.00 in a research report on Friday, January 5th.

Buckle Price Performance

BKE stock opened at $36.53 on Monday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $39.04 and a 200 day simple moving average of $38.67. The stock has a market cap of $1.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.28 and a beta of 1.23. Buckle has a 1 year low of $30.18 and a 1 year high of $48.15.

Buckle (NYSE:BKE) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, March 15th. The company reported $1.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.44 by $0.15. Buckle had a net margin of 17.44% and a return on equity of 50.88%. The firm had revenue of $382.40 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $383.63 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.76 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 4.8% on a year-over-year basis.

Buckle Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 26th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 12th will be given a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.83%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 11th. Buckle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 31.75%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Buckle

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC increased its position in shares of Buckle by 4.0% during the second quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 7,801 shares of the company’s stock worth $270,000 after buying an additional 300 shares during the period. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in Buckle by 2.8% during the first quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 11,641 shares of the company’s stock worth $415,000 after acquiring an additional 316 shares in the last quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV boosted its stake in Buckle by 4.1% during the first quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 8,324 shares of the company’s stock worth $297,000 after acquiring an additional 331 shares in the last quarter. Unison Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Buckle by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Unison Advisors LLC now owns 34,560 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,642,000 after acquiring an additional 375 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Meritage Portfolio Management boosted its stake in Buckle by 1.7% during the third quarter. Meritage Portfolio Management now owns 22,329 shares of the company’s stock worth $746,000 after acquiring an additional 379 shares in the last quarter. 53.93% of the stock is currently 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, Reclaim, BKE Vintage, Nova Industries, J.B.