GAMMA Investing LLC Raises Holdings in Macy’s, Inc. (NYSE:M)

GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in Macy’s, Inc. (NYSE:M) by 1,188.7% during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 44,086 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 40,665 shares during the quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC’s holdings in Macy’s were worth $554,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. New York State Teachers Retirement System increased its holdings in Macy’s by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System now owns 321,508 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,443,000 after buying an additional 6,349 shares during the last quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D grew its holdings in Macy’s by 10.2% in the 4th quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D now owns 138,650 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,347,000 after buying an additional 12,789 shares in the last quarter. Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Macy’s in the 4th quarter worth approximately $38,000. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund acquired a new stake in Macy’s in the fourth quarter worth approximately $221,000. Finally, Ieq Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Macy’s in the fourth quarter worth approximately $712,000. 87.36% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Macy’s Stock Performance

NYSE:M opened at $11.07 on Thursday. Macy’s, Inc. has a 12-month low of $9.76 and a 12-month high of $20.47. The company has a quick ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.01 billion, a PE ratio of 5.62 and a beta of 1.74. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $11.64 and a 200 day moving average price of $13.69.

Macy’s (NYSE:M) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 28th. The company reported $0.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.15 by $0.01. Macy’s had a net margin of 2.45% and a return on equity of 16.34%. The firm had revenue of $4.60 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.38 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.27 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 5.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Macy’s, Inc. will post 2.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Macy’s Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Investors of record on Friday, June 13th will be given a $0.1824 dividend. This represents a $0.73 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.59%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 13th. Macy’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 37.06%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have issued reports on M. New Street Research set a $13.00 price target on Macy’s in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Gordon Haskett downgraded shares of Macy’s from an “accumulate” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Cowen reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Macy’s in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $12.00 price target (up from $11.00) on shares of Macy’s in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. Finally, UBS Group decreased their price objective on shares of Macy’s from $9.00 to $8.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a report on Friday, March 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $13.20.

Insider Transactions at Macy’s

In other news, CEO Antony Spring sold 20,868 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.68, for a total transaction of $264,606.24. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 321,244 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,073,373.92. This trade represents a 6.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Tracy M. Preston sold 2,780 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.68, for a total transaction of $35,250.40. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 4,723 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $59,887.64. The trade was a 37.05% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 41,751 shares of company stock valued at $537,790. Corporate insiders own 1.09% of the company’s stock.

Macy’s Profile

Macy’s, Inc engages in the retail of apparel, accessories, cosmetics, home furnishings, and other consumer goods. The firm’s brands include Macy’s, Bloomingdale’s, and Bluemercury. It offers men’s, women’s, and children’s apparel, women’s accessories, intimate apparel, shoes, cosmetics, fragrances, as well as home and miscellaneous products.