Renaissance Technologies LLC Buys 31,400 Shares of J.Jill, Inc. (NYSE:JILL)

Renaissance Technologies LLC increased its stake in shares of J.Jill, Inc. (NYSE:JILL) by 7.0% during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 480,056 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 31,400 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC owned 4.47% of J.Jill worth $16,788,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in JILL. CWM LLC purchased a new stake in shares of J.Jill in the second quarter worth about $29,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in J.Jill during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $34,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC purchased a new stake in J.Jill in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $81,000. Acadian Asset Management LLC bought a new position in J.Jill in the 1st quarter valued at $201,000. Finally, CenterBook Partners LP purchased a new position in shares of J.Jill during the 4th quarter valued at $206,000. Institutional investors own 40.71% of the company’s stock.

J.Jill Stock Performance

Shares of JILL stock opened at $25.13 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a current ratio of 0.89. J.Jill, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $23.06 and a fifty-two week high of $40.61. The company has a market capitalization of $270.10 million, a P/E ratio of 7.50 and a beta of 0.61. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $33.01 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $31.43.

J.Jill (NYSE:JILL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, September 4th. The specialty retailer reported $1.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.94 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $155.24 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $155.13 million. J.Jill had a net margin of 6.70% and a return on equity of 90.61%. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.10 EPS. Analysts expect that J.Jill, Inc. will post 3.31 earnings per share for the current year.

J.Jill Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 2nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 18th will be given a dividend of $0.07 per share. This represents a $0.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.11%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 18th. J.Jill’s payout ratio is 8.36%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Claire Spofford sold 13,490 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.87, for a total transaction of $483,886.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 181,471 shares in the company, valued at $6,509,364.77. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, CEO Claire Spofford sold 13,490 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.87, for a total transaction of $483,886.30. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 181,471 shares in the company, valued at $6,509,364.77. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Mark W. Webb sold 1,348 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.31, for a total transaction of $43,553.88. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 107,808 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,483,276.48. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 27,538 shares of company stock worth $947,187. 6.70% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently commented on the company. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on J.Jill from $44.00 to $40.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. BTIG Research initiated coverage on shares of J.Jill in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $44.00 price objective on the stock. TD Cowen dropped their target price on shares of J.Jill from $37.00 to $32.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. Telsey Advisory Group reissued a “market perform” rating and issued a $38.00 price target on shares of J.Jill in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. Finally, Lake Street Capital raised their price objective on shares of J.Jill from $38.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, June 10th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $39.33.

J.Jill Profile

J.Jill, Inc operates as an omnichannel retailer for women's apparel under the J.Jill brand in the United States. It offers apparel, footwear, and accessories, including scarves and jewelry. The company markets its products through retail stores, website, and catalogs. J.Jill, Inc was founded in 1959 and is headquartered in Quincy, Massachusetts.