American Century Companies Inc. Increases Stake in Build-A-Bear Workshop, Inc. (NYSE:BBW)

American Century Companies Inc. increased its holdings in Build-A-Bear Workshop, Inc. (NYSE:BBW) by 17.2% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 320,832 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 47,096 shares during the quarter. American Century Companies Inc. owned approximately 2.32% of Build-A-Bear Workshop worth $8,107,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Quest Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Build-A-Bear Workshop by 209.8% in the 2nd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 8,098 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $205,000 after purchasing an additional 5,484 shares during the period. Koss Olinger Consulting LLC bought a new position in shares of Build-A-Bear Workshop in the 2nd quarter worth $504,000. Pacifica Capital Investments LLC raised its position in shares of Build-A-Bear Workshop by 23.4% in the 2nd quarter. Pacifica Capital Investments LLC now owns 1,229,006 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $31,057,000 after acquiring an additional 232,840 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Build-A-Bear Workshop by 13.5% during the 2nd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 22,929 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $579,000 after purchasing an additional 2,723 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Privium Fund Management UK Ltd bought a new stake in Build-A-Bear Workshop during the second quarter valued at about $332,000. 79.30% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have commented on BBW. Northland Securities increased their price target on shares of Build-A-Bear Workshop from $36.00 to $38.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, August 30th. StockNews.com raised shares of Build-A-Bear Workshop from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, September 2nd.

Build-A-Bear Workshop Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:BBW opened at $32.49 on Tuesday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $28.52 and its 200 day moving average is $28.04. Build-A-Bear Workshop, Inc. has a 1 year low of $21.24 and a 1 year high of $34.80. The firm has a market capitalization of $448.52 million, a P/E ratio of 9.31 and a beta of 1.56.

Build-A-Bear Workshop (NYSE:BBW) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 29th. The specialty retailer reported $0.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.57 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $111.80 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $107.90 million. Build-A-Bear Workshop had a net margin of 10.36% and a return on equity of 38.01%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.57 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that Build-A-Bear Workshop, Inc. will post 3.72 EPS for the current year.

Build-A-Bear Workshop Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 26th will be paid a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 26th. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.46%. Build-A-Bear Workshop’s payout ratio is currently 22.92%.

Build-A-Bear Workshop announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, September 11th that allows the company to buyback $100.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization allows the specialty retailer to purchase up to 23.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other Build-A-Bear Workshop news, CEO Sharon Price John sold 41,034 shares of Build-A-Bear Workshop stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.99, for a total transaction of $1,066,473.66. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 515,004 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,384,953.96. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 7.90% of the company’s stock.

About Build-A-Bear Workshop

Build-A-Bear Workshop, Inc operates as a multi-channel retailer of plush animals and related products in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Ireland, and internationally. The company operates through three segments: Direct-to-Consumer, Commercial, and International Franchising. Its merchandise comprises various styles of plush products to be stuffed, pre-stuffed plush products, and sounds and scents that can be added to the stuffed animals, as well as range of clothing, shoes and accessories, and other toy and novelty items, including family sleepwear.