Franklin Resources Inc. Raises Stock Position in The Buckle, Inc. (NYSE:BKE)

Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in The Buckle, Inc. (NYSE:BKE) by 6.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 12,160 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 761 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc.’s holdings in Buckle were worth $524,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of BKE. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in Buckle by 52.0% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 789 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 270 shares during the period. Quarry LP grew its stake in Buckle by 60.9% in the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 938 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 355 shares during the period. Quest Partners LLC bought a new position in Buckle in the third quarter worth $86,000. Signaturefd LLC lifted its position in Buckle by 38.7% during the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 2,236 shares of the company’s stock valued at $98,000 after buying an additional 624 shares during the period. Finally, CWM LLC lifted its position in Buckle by 85.3% during the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 3,725 shares of the company’s stock valued at $164,000 after buying an additional 1,715 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 53.93% of the company’s stock.

Buckle Trading Down 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE:BKE opened at $51.24 on Tuesday. The Buckle, Inc. has a 12-month low of $34.87 and a 12-month high of $54.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.01 and a beta of 1.14. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $48.55 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $43.46.

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

Buckle Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a special dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 29th. Investors of record on Wednesday, January 15th will be given a dividend of $2.50 per share. This represents a dividend yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, January 15th. Buckle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 35.53%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Kari G. Smith sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.29, for a total transaction of $1,045,800.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 150,554 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,872,468.66. This trade represents a 11.73 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Dennis H. Nelson sold 20,453 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.00, for a total transaction of $879,479.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,842,999 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $79,248,957. The trade was a 1.10 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 134,265 shares of company stock worth $6,414,313 in the last three months. Insiders own 39.80% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently issued reports on BKE shares. StockNews.com lowered shares of Buckle from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 26th. UBS Group upgraded shares of Buckle from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $31.00 to $46.00 in a report on Tuesday, November 12th.

About Buckle

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.