The Buckle, Inc. (NYSE:BKE) Sees Large Decline in Short Interest

The Buckle, Inc. (NYSE:BKE) was the recipient of a large decrease in short interest in the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 2,350,000 shares, a decrease of 20.3% from the March 15th total of 2,950,000 shares. Currently, 7.6% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 604,900 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.9 days.

Insider Transactions at Buckle

In other Buckle news, CEO Dennis H. Nelson sold 20,453 shares of Buckle stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.86, for a total value of $835,709.58. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,678,375 shares in the company, valued at $68,578,402.50. The trade was a 1.20 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In the last quarter, insiders sold 74,036 shares of company stock valued at $2,977,557. Company insiders own 39.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Buckle

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in BKE. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC boosted its holdings in Buckle by 22.9% during the first quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 47,610 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,824,000 after buying an additional 8,883 shares in the last quarter. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of Buckle by 1.4% during the 1st quarter. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC now owns 21,348 shares of the company’s stock valued at $818,000 after acquiring an additional 302 shares during the period. Redhawk Wealth Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Buckle by 36.6% in the 1st quarter. Redhawk Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 21,541 shares of the company’s stock valued at $825,000 after purchasing an additional 5,771 shares in the last quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB raised its holdings in Buckle by 42.2% in the 1st quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 15,500 shares of the company’s stock worth $594,000 after purchasing an additional 4,600 shares during the period. Finally, Viking Fund Management LLC acquired a new stake in Buckle in the first quarter valued at approximately $115,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 53.93% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BKE has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. StockNews.com lowered shares of Buckle from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. UBS Group lowered their price target on Buckle from $43.00 to $41.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 18th.

Buckle Price Performance

BKE traded down $0.58 during trading on Monday, reaching $34.03. 460,815 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 449,792. Buckle has a 1 year low of $33.12 and a 1 year high of $54.25. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $38.01 and its 200-day simple moving average is $44.41. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.64 and a beta of 0.91.

Buckle (NYSE:BKE) last posted its earnings results on Friday, March 14th. The company reported $1.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.44 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $379.20 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $378.97 million. Buckle had a net margin of 16.21% and a return on equity of 44.11%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down .8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.59 earnings per share.

Buckle Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 29th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 15th will be issued a $0.35 dividend. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.11%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 15th. Buckle’s payout ratio is presently 36.08%.

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, Sterling & Stitch, Reclaim, BKE Vintage, Nova Industries, J.B.