StockNews.com Lowers Cato (NYSE:CATO) to Hold

StockNews.com lowered shares of Cato (NYSE:CATO) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report report published on Friday morning.

Cato Trading Down 2.1 %

NYSE:CATO opened at $6.84 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $140.83 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -97.71 and a beta of 1.06. Cato has a twelve month low of $6.53 and a twelve month high of $10.78. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $7.34 and a 200-day simple moving average of $7.85.

Cato (NYSE:CATO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 16th. The specialty retailer reported ($0.30) EPS for the quarter. The firm had revenue of $158.26 million for the quarter. Cato had a negative net margin of 0.26% and a negative return on equity of 0.83%.

Cato Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, January 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 18th will be paid a $0.17 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 15th. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 9.94%. Cato’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -971.43%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cato

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Millennium Management LLC boosted its holdings in Cato by 1,490.2% in the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 475,771 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $4,439,000 after acquiring an additional 445,852 shares in the last quarter. Susquehanna International Group LLP lifted its holdings in shares of Cato by 1,639.5% during the fourth quarter. Susquehanna International Group LLP now owns 259,322 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $2,419,000 after purchasing an additional 244,414 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP lifted its holdings in shares of Cato by 582.2% during the fourth quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 246,958 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $2,304,000 after purchasing an additional 210,760 shares during the period. Jane Street Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Cato by 1,456.9% during the fourth quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 181,115 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,690,000 after purchasing an additional 169,482 shares during the period. Finally, Two Sigma Investments LP acquired a new stake in shares of Cato during the fourth quarter worth about $1,502,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 48.61% of the company’s stock.

About Cato

The Cato Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a specialty retailer of fashion apparel and accessories primarily in the southeastern United States. It operates through two segments, Retail and Credit. The company's stores and e-commerce websites offer a range of apparel and accessories, including dressy, career, and casual sportswear; and dresses, coats, shoes, lingerie, costume jewelry, and handbags, as well as men's wear, and lines for kids and infants.