Short Interest in Burlington Stores, Inc. (NYSE:BURL) Rises By 12.6%

Burlington Stores, Inc. (NYSE:BURL) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest in January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totalling 2,590,000 shares, a growth of 12.6% from the December 31st total of 2,300,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 829,300 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.1 days. Approximately 4.1% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Burlington Stores Trading Down 3.7 %

Shares of Burlington Stores stock traded down $10.39 during trading on Monday, hitting $273.54. The stock had a trading volume of 1,180,457 shares, compared to its average volume of 694,765. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $287.86 and a 200 day simple moving average of $270.73. The company has a market capitalization of $17.36 billion, a PE ratio of 37.47, a P/E/G ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.62. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35. Burlington Stores has a 1 year low of $174.64 and a 1 year high of $298.89.

Burlington Stores (NYSE:BURL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 26th. The company reported $1.55 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.54 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $2.53 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.55 billion. Burlington Stores had a net margin of 4.49% and a return on equity of 47.52%. The firm’s revenue was up 10.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.98 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Burlington Stores will post 7.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BURL has been the topic of several research reports. Evercore ISI increased their price target on shares of Burlington Stores from $315.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $310.00 price target on shares of Burlington Stores in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Burlington Stores from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. UBS Group raised shares of Burlington Stores from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the company from $280.00 to $360.00 in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Burlington Stores from $327.00 to $317.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $317.87.

Insider Activity at Burlington Stores

In related news, CMO Jennifer Vecchio sold 494 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $293.89, for a total transaction of $145,181.66. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer now owns 59,931 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,613,121.59. The trade was a 0.82 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.91% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Burlington Stores

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BURL. Handelsbanken Fonder AB lifted its stake in shares of Burlington Stores by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 16,400 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,675,000 after buying an additional 400 shares during the last quarter. Ieq Capital LLC increased its holdings in Burlington Stores by 54.0% in the 4th quarter. Ieq Capital LLC now owns 3,349 shares of the company’s stock valued at $955,000 after buying an additional 1,175 shares during the period. Buckingham Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Burlington Stores by 159.0% in the 4th quarter. Buckingham Capital Management Inc. now owns 17,419 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,965,000 after purchasing an additional 10,693 shares during the last quarter. Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Burlington Stores in the 4th quarter worth about $521,000. Finally, Peregrine Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Burlington Stores by 10.0% during the 4th quarter. Peregrine Capital Management LLC now owns 41,990 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,970,000 after acquiring an additional 3,828 shares during the last quarter.

Burlington Stores Company Profile

Burlington Stores, Inc operates as a retailer of branded merchandise in the United States. The company provides fashion-focused merchandise, including women's ready-to-wear apparel, menswear, youth apparel, footwear, accessories, toys, gifts, and coats, as well as baby, home, and beauty products.