Newport Trust Company LLC Cuts Holdings in Dillard’s, Inc. (NYSE:DDS)

Newport Trust Company LLC lowered its position in shares of Dillard’s, Inc. (NYSE:DDS) by 1.9% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,844,096 shares of the company’s stock after selling 93,569 shares during the quarter. Dillard’s comprises 5.4% of Newport Trust Company LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 7th biggest holding. Newport Trust Company LLC owned about 29.84% of Dillard’s worth $2,133,291,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of DDS. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Dillard’s during the second quarter valued at about $26,000. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new position in shares of Dillard’s during the first quarter valued at about $68,000. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its holdings in shares of Dillard’s by 31.0% during the second quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 330 shares of the company’s stock valued at $145,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares during the period. Quest Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Dillard’s during the fourth quarter valued at about $150,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Dillard’s by 45.1% during the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 341 shares of the company’s stock valued at $161,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 67.15% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on DDS shares. UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of Dillard’s from $202.00 to $194.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 16th. Telsey Advisory Group lowered their target price on shares of Dillard’s from $475.00 to $380.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 16th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Dillard’s from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Robert C. Connor bought 100 shares of Dillard’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 19th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $346.82 per share, with a total value of $34,682.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 78,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $27,051,960. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 33.80% of the company’s stock.

Dillard’s Trading Up 2.5 %

NYSE:DDS opened at $367.93 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 1.62 and a current ratio of 3.14. The firm has a market cap of $5.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.36 and a beta of 0.85. Dillard’s, Inc. has a 52 week low of $286.39 and a 52 week high of $476.48. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $371.97 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $411.78.

Dillard’s (NYSE:DDS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 15th. The company reported $4.59 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $5.97 by ($1.38). The firm had revenue of $1.49 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.53 billion. Dillard’s had a net margin of 9.94% and a return on equity of 34.29%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 6.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $7.98 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Dillard’s, Inc. will post 31.2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Dillard’s Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 4th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 30th will be given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.27%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 30th. Dillard’s’s dividend payout ratio is currently 2.27%.

Dillard’s Company Profile

Dillard's, Inc operates retail department stores in the southeastern, southwestern, and midwestern areas of the United States. The company's stores offer merchandise, including fashion apparel for women, men, and children; and accessories, cosmetics, home furnishings, and other consumer goods.