Inspire Investing LLC Invests $791,000 in J.Jill, Inc. (NYSE:JILL)

Inspire Investing LLC bought a new stake in J.Jill, Inc. (NYSE:JILL) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 22,607 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $791,000. Inspire Investing LLC owned 0.21% of J.Jill as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in JILL. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of J.Jill by 2,143.3% during the first quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. now owns 134,600 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $4,303,000 after acquiring an additional 128,600 shares during the period. Resolute Capital Asset Partners LLC bought a new position in J.Jill during the 2nd quarter valued at about $1,749,000. Renaissance Technologies LLC lifted its holdings in J.Jill by 7.0% during the 2nd quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 480,056 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $16,788,000 after purchasing an additional 31,400 shares during the last quarter. Privium Fund Management UK Ltd acquired a new position in J.Jill in the second quarter valued at about $1,097,000. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new stake in J.Jill during the second quarter worth about $1,035,000. Institutional investors own 40.71% of the company’s stock.

J.Jill Trading Down 1.5 %

Shares of JILL opened at $25.17 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $33.25 and its 200-day simple moving average is $31.38. The firm has a market capitalization of $270.47 million, a PE ratio of 7.51 and a beta of 0.61. J.Jill, Inc. has a 12-month low of $23.06 and a 12-month high of $40.61. The company has a quick ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76.

J.Jill (NYSE:JILL) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, September 4th. The specialty retailer reported $1.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.94 by $0.11. J.Jill had a net margin of 6.70% and a return on equity of 90.61%. The company had revenue of $155.24 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $155.13 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.10 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that J.Jill, Inc. will post 3.31 earnings per share for the current year.

J.Jill Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 2nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 18th will be issued 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 dividend payout ratio is presently 8.36%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

Insider Buying and Selling at J.Jill

In related news, CFO Mark W. Webb sold 1,352 shares of J.Jill stock in a transaction on Monday, July 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.74, for a total transaction of $45,616.48. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 108,576 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,663,354.24. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, CEO Claire Spofford sold 10,000 shares of J.Jill stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.76, for a total transaction of $337,600.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 204,961 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,919,483.36. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Mark W. Webb sold 1,352 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.74, for a total transaction of $45,616.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 108,576 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,663,354.24. 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. Insiders own 6.70% of the company’s stock.

About J.Jill

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.