The Buckle, Inc. (NYSE:BKE) Short Interest Update

The Buckle, Inc. (NYSE:BKE) was the target of a significant growth in short interest during the month of October. As of October 15th, there was short interest totalling 3,100,000 shares, a growth of 6.9% from the September 30th total of 2,900,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 393,400 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 7.9 days. Currently, 10.1% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have weighed in on BKE shares. UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of Buckle from $32.00 to $31.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 26th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Buckle from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd.

Buckle Trading Down 1.0 %

BKE stock traded down $0.44 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $42.12. The stock had a trading volume of 169,384 shares, compared to its average volume of 401,735. Buckle has a 52 week low of $32.16 and a 52 week high of $48.15. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.37 and a beta of 1.13. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $42.80 and a 200 day simple moving average of $39.84.

Buckle (NYSE:BKE) last released its earnings results on Friday, August 23rd. The company reported $0.78 EPS for the quarter. Buckle had a net margin of 16.69% and a return on equity of 46.17%. The firm had revenue of $282.39 million for the quarter.

Buckle Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 25th. Investors of record on Friday, October 11th were issued a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.32%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, October 11th. Buckle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 34.15%.

Insider Activity at Buckle

In other Buckle news, CEO Dennis H. Nelson sold 20,453 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.00, for a total transaction of $879,479.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,842,999 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $79,248,957. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, CEO Dennis H. Nelson sold 20,453 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.00, for a total value of $879,479.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,842,999 shares in the company, valued at $79,248,957. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Dennis H. Nelson sold 15,340 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.80, for a total transaction of $579,852.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,950,377 shares in the company, valued at approximately $73,724,250.60. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 138,718 shares of company stock valued at $5,819,174 over the last ninety days. 39.80% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Buckle

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in BKE. Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Buckle by 52.0% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 789 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 270 shares during the last quarter. EntryPoint Capital LLC bought a new stake in Buckle during the 1st quarter worth approximately $70,000. CWM LLC grew its holdings in Buckle by 119.9% during the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,010 shares of the company’s stock worth $74,000 after acquiring an additional 1,096 shares during the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC grew its holdings in Buckle by 38.7% during the 3rd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 2,236 shares of the company’s stock worth $98,000 after acquiring an additional 624 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Gladius Capital Management LP grew its holdings in Buckle by 217.4% during the 2nd quarter. Gladius Capital Management LP now owns 2,955 shares of the company’s stock worth $109,000 after acquiring an additional 2,024 shares during the last quarter. 53.93% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.