HighTower Advisors LLC Makes New $225,000 Investment in Signet Jewelers Limited (NYSE:SIG)

HighTower Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Signet Jewelers Limited (NYSE:SIG) during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 2,191 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $225,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Ritholtz Wealth Management boosted its stake in shares of Signet Jewelers by 4.9% during the 3rd quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 2,459 shares of the company’s stock worth $254,000 after buying an additional 115 shares during the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Signet Jewelers during the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its position in Signet Jewelers by 2.2% during the second quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 11,793 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,056,000 after purchasing an additional 257 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV grew its stake in Signet Jewelers by 25.5% in the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,293 shares of the company’s stock valued at $133,000 after purchasing an additional 263 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Arizona State Retirement System increased its position in shares of Signet Jewelers by 2.3% during the 2nd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 12,458 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,116,000 after purchasing an additional 279 shares during the last quarter.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently commented on SIG. StockNews.com downgraded Signet Jewelers from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Signet Jewelers from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and set a $87.00 target price on shares of Signet Jewelers in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Bank of America lowered their price target on shares of Signet Jewelers from $108.00 to $100.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, September 13th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their price objective on Signet Jewelers from $145.00 to $132.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, September 11th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Signet Jewelers currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $109.60.

Insider Transactions at Signet Jewelers

In related news, insider Joan M. Hilson sold 8,000 shares of Signet Jewelers stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $94.57, for a total value of $756,560.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 200,844 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,993,817.08. The trade was a 3.83 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Oded Edelman sold 1,398 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $94.53, for a total value of $132,152.94. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 32,666 shares in the company, valued at $3,087,916.98. This represents a 4.10 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 21,043 shares of company stock worth $2,058,957 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 3.26% of the company’s stock.

Signet Jewelers Stock Up 0.3 %

Signet Jewelers stock opened at $81.21 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $3.53 billion, a PE ratio of 9.35, a PEG ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 2.10. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $93.31 and its 200 day moving average is $89.52. The company has a quick ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 1.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. Signet Jewelers Limited has a 12-month low of $72.26 and a 12-month high of $112.06.

Signet Jewelers (NYSE:SIG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, December 5th. The company reported $0.24 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.29 by ($0.05). The company had revenue of $1.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.37 billion. Signet Jewelers had a return on equity of 28.69% and a net margin of 8.57%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.24 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Signet Jewelers Limited will post 9.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Signet Jewelers Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 24th will be given a dividend of $0.29 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 24th. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.43%. Signet Jewelers’s dividend payout ratio is currently 13.35%.

About Signet Jewelers

Signet Jewelers Limited operates as a diamond jewelry retailer. It operates through three segments: North America, International, and Other. The North America segment operates jewelry stores in jewelry stores in malls, mall-based kiosks, and off-mall locations in the United States and Canada primarily under the Kay Jewelers, Kay Jewelers Outlet, Jared The Galleria Of Jewelry, Jared Vault, Zales Outlet, Zales Jewelers, Diamonds Direct, James Allen, Banter by Piercing Pagoda, and Peoples Jewellers names, as well as operates online through its digital banners, James Allen and Blue Nile.