Principal Financial Group Inc. Trims Stock Position in Shoe Carnival, Inc. (NASDAQ:SCVL)

Principal Financial Group Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of Shoe Carnival, Inc. (NASDAQ:SCVL) by 5.2% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 91,729 shares of the company’s stock after selling 5,007 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.34% of Shoe Carnival worth $4,022,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Pacer Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Shoe Carnival during the 3rd quarter valued at $37,440,000. State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of Shoe Carnival by 2.2% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 793,318 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,787,000 after acquiring an additional 17,086 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Shoe Carnival by 2.4% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 452,548 shares of the company’s stock valued at $19,848,000 after acquiring an additional 10,761 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. increased its position in Shoe Carnival by 34.7% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 410,355 shares of the company’s stock worth $15,138,000 after purchasing an additional 105,818 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Foundry Partners LLC raised its stake in Shoe Carnival by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. Foundry Partners LLC now owns 149,735 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,566,000 after purchasing an additional 940 shares during the last quarter. 66.05% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Shoe Carnival Stock Down 2.3 %

Shares of Shoe Carnival stock opened at $32.31 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $878.02 million, a PE ratio of 11.88 and a beta of 1.53. Shoe Carnival, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $24.94 and a fifty-two week high of $46.92. The business’s fifty day moving average is $34.98 and its two-hundred day moving average is $38.29.

Shoe Carnival (NASDAQ:SCVL) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 21st. The company reported $0.71 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.70 by $0.01. Shoe Carnival had a return on equity of 12.52% and a net margin of 6.12%. The firm had revenue of $306.90 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $316.97 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.80 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Shoe Carnival, Inc. will post 2.6 EPS for the current year.

Shoe Carnival declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan on Thursday, December 12th that allows the company to repurchase $50.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to reacquire up to 5.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Shoe Carnival Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 27th. Investors of record on Monday, January 13th will be given a dividend of $0.135 per share. This represents a $0.54 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.67%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, January 13th. Shoe Carnival’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 19.85%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Chairman Wayne J. Weaver purchased 285,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 6th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $33.91 per share, for a total transaction of $9,681,305.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chairman now directly owns 4,173,529 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $141,524,368.39. The trade was a 7.34 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 34.70% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, StockNews.com raised shares of Shoe Carnival from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, November 30th.

About Shoe Carnival

Shoe Carnival, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a family footwear retailer in the United States. The company offers range of dress, casual, work, and athletic shoes, as well as sandals and boots for men, women, and children; and various accessories. The company also operates stores, and sells its products through online shopping at shoecarnival.com, as well as through mobile app.