Buckle (NYSE:BKE) Hits New 12-Month High – Still a Buy?

The Buckle, Inc. (NYSE:BKE)’s share price reached a new 52-week high on Monday . The stock traded as high as $50.70 and last traded at $50.70, with a volume of 31507 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $48.86.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. UBS Group raised Buckle from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $31.00 to $46.00 in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. StockNews.com raised shares of Buckle from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 18th.

Buckle Price Performance

The firm has a fifty day moving average of $44.32 and a 200 day moving average of $40.98. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.15 and a beta of 1.14.

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

Buckle Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 25th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 11th were given a $0.35 dividend. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.70%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, October 11th. Buckle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 35.53%.

Insider Transactions at Buckle

In related news, SVP Brett P. Milkie sold 16,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.35, for a total value of $661,600.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 80,170 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,315,029.50. This trade represents a 16.64 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Karen B. Rhoads sold 9,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.63, for a total value of $490,485.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 214,089 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,053,415.07. The trade was a 4.25 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 127,765 shares of company stock valued at $5,524,118 in the last three months. 39.80% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Buckle

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Buckle by 4.8% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 799,078 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,142,000 after acquiring an additional 36,472 shares during the last quarter. Impala Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Buckle by 43.3% during the 3rd quarter. Impala Asset Management LLC now owns 365,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $16,049,000 after purchasing an additional 110,273 shares during the last quarter. XTX Topco Ltd acquired a new position in Buckle in the third quarter valued at about $430,000. iSAM Funds UK Ltd purchased a new position in Buckle during the third quarter worth about $522,000. Finally, State Street Corp increased its position in shares of Buckle by 5.7% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,338,395 shares of the company’s stock valued at $58,849,000 after acquiring an additional 72,532 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 53.93% of the company’s stock.

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.