J.Jill (NYSE:JILL) Upgraded to Buy at Wall Street Zen

J.Jill (NYSE:JILL) was upgraded by Wall Street Zen from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Saturday.

Other analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of J.Jill in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Telsey Advisory Group cut their price objective on J.Jill from $17.00 to $16.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, December 10th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of J.Jill from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 4th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $18.00 target price on shares of J.Jill in a research report on Wednesday, December 10th. Finally, BTIG Research reduced their price target on shares of J.Jill from $26.00 to $21.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, December 10th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $18.00.

J.Jill Stock Performance

NYSE JILL opened at $14.98 on Friday. J.Jill has a twelve month low of $13.32 and a twelve month high of $28.94. The company has a quick ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The stock has a market cap of $226.35 million, a P/E ratio of 6.84 and a beta of 0.94. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $14.72 and its 200 day simple moving average is $15.67.

J.Jill (NYSE:JILL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, December 10th. The specialty retailer reported $0.76 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.58 by $0.18. J.Jill had a net margin of 5.60% and a return on equity of 36.33%. The firm had revenue of $150.53 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $148.38 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.89 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that J.Jill will post 3.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On J.Jill

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Royce & Associates LP raised its stake in shares of J.Jill by 22.5% in the third quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 1,204,103 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $20,650,000 after acquiring an additional 221,218 shares during the last quarter. Invenomic Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of J.Jill in the third quarter valued at approximately $3,431,000. Fund 1 Investments LLC raised its position in J.Jill by 22.8% in the 2nd quarter. Fund 1 Investments LLC now owns 936,248 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $13,707,000 after purchasing an additional 173,785 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP lifted its holdings in J.Jill by 931.8% during the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 147,892 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $2,165,000 after buying an additional 133,558 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Paradigm Capital Management Inc. NY lifted its holdings in J.Jill by 13.5% during the 2nd quarter. Paradigm Capital Management Inc. NY now owns 1,057,300 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $15,479,000 after buying an additional 125,838 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 40.71% of the company’s stock.

About J.Jill

J.Jill is a women’s apparel retailer specializing in modern, versatile clothing and accessories. The company designs and markets a range of products that emphasize comfort and style, including knitwear, woven tops, pants, dresses, outerwear, jewelry, and footwear. Through its in-house design team, J.Jill focuses on creating seasonal collections that appeal to women seeking effortless, mix-and-match wardrobes.

Products are sold through a multi-channel distribution network comprising company-operated boutiques, e-commerce platforms, and catalog sales.