Insider Selling: Buckle (NYSE:BKE) Director Sells $111,100.00 in Stock

Buckle, Inc. (The) (NYSE:BKE) Director Bill Fairfield sold 2,500 shares of Buckle stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.44, for a total value of $111,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 52,908 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,351,231.52. The trade was a 4.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website.

Buckle Stock Performance

NYSE BKE opened at $45.24 on Friday. Buckle, Inc. has a one year low of $42.39 and a one year high of $61.69. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $50.55 and a 200 day moving average of $52.21. The company has a market capitalization of $2.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.38 and a beta of 1.08.

Buckle (NYSE:BKE) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, May 29th. The company reported $0.92 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.74 by $0.18. Buckle had a return on equity of 47.35% and a net margin of 16.85%.The company had revenue of $288.74 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $287.68 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.70 EPS. Buckle’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.1% on a year-over-year basis.

Buckle Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 29th. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 15th will be issued a $0.35 dividend. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 15th. Buckle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 32.11%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently commented on BKE shares. UBS Group reduced their price objective on Buckle from $52.00 to $47.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, June 1st. Wall Street Zen downgraded Buckle from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, April 4th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded Buckle from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Friday, May 29th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $47.00.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Buckle

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Buckle by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,970,767 shares of the company’s stock valued at $212,118,000 after purchasing an additional 89,441 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Buckle by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,370,398 shares of the company’s stock valued at $73,207,000 after purchasing an additional 5,784 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of Buckle by 2.3% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,342,045 shares of the company’s stock valued at $67,582,000 after purchasing an additional 30,128 shares during the period. State Street Corp grew its stake in shares of Buckle by 4.3% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,321,675 shares of the company’s stock valued at $70,604,000 after purchasing an additional 54,826 shares during the period. Finally, Morgan Stanley grew its stake in shares of Buckle by 26.8% during the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 1,244,389 shares of the company’s stock valued at $66,475,000 after purchasing an additional 263,338 shares during the period. 53.93% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Buckle

Buckle, Inc is a retailer specializing in casual apparel, footwear and accessories for young men and women. The company is known for its denim-focused collections, offering both private-label lines and curated brand-name merchandise. Its product assortment includes jeans, tops, outerwear, shoes and a variety of accessories such as belts, jewelry and handbags, all aimed at blending contemporary style with everyday comfort.

Founded in 1948 in Kearney, Nebraska, Buckle began as a single clothing store and has since expanded into a nationwide chain.