Entropy Technologies LP Buys New Shares in The Buckle, Inc. (NYSE:BKE)

Entropy Technologies LP acquired a new position in shares of The Buckle, Inc. (NYSE:BKE) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 7,487 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $380,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in BKE. Blue Trust Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Buckle by 52.0% during the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 789 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 270 shares during the period. Quarry LP grew its position in Buckle by 60.9% in the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 938 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 355 shares in the last quarter. DGS Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Buckle by 6.8% in the 3rd quarter. DGS Capital Management LLC now owns 7,131 shares of the company’s stock valued at $314,000 after acquiring an additional 451 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its stake in Buckle by 5.5% during the third quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 8,993 shares of the company’s stock valued at $395,000 after buying an additional 466 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Redhawk Wealth Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in Buckle by 4.1% during the fourth quarter. Redhawk Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 15,770 shares of the company’s stock valued at $801,000 after buying an additional 622 shares in the last quarter. 53.93% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Kari G. Smith sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.29, for a total value of $1,045,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 150,554 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,872,468.66. This represents a 11.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Dennis H. Nelson sold 20,453 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.57, for a total value of $1,054,761.21. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,739,734 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $89,718,082.38. The trade was a 1.16 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 93,589 shares of company stock worth $4,869,767. 39.80% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BKE has been the topic of a number of research reports. StockNews.com upgraded Buckle from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. UBS Group raised Buckle from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $31.00 to $46.00 in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th.

Buckle Trading Down 2.1 %

Buckle stock opened at $42.49 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.78 and a beta of 1.14. The Buckle, Inc. has a 1 year low of $34.87 and a 1 year high of $54.25. The business has a 50-day moving average of $49.45 and a 200-day moving average of $45.87.

Buckle (NYSE:BKE) last released its earnings results on Friday, November 22nd. The company reported $0.88 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.89 by ($0.01). Buckle had a net margin of 16.21% and a return on equity of 44.11%. The firm had revenue of $293.60 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $293.60 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.04 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 3.3% on a year-over-year basis.

Buckle Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a special dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 29th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, January 15th were issued a $2.50 dividend. This represents a yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, January 15th. Buckle’s dividend payout ratio is 35.53%.

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.