Quest Partners LLC Buys New Position in J.Jill, Inc. (NYSE:JILL)

Quest Partners LLC bought a new position in J.Jill, Inc. (NYSE:JILL) in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 11,669 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $288,000. Quest Partners LLC owned approximately 0.08% of J.Jill as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of J.Jill during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $26,000. CWM LLC acquired a new position in shares of J.Jill during the second quarter valued at about $29,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of J.Jill during the 2nd quarter worth about $34,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC acquired a new stake in shares of J.Jill in the 2nd quarter valued at about $81,000. Finally, Acadian Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in J.Jill in the 1st quarter valued at about $201,000. 40.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

J.Jill Price Performance

JILL opened at $27.86 on Tuesday. J.Jill, Inc. has a 1 year low of $23.06 and a 1 year high of $40.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 0.89 and a quick ratio of 0.44. The company has a market capitalization of $420.13 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.84 and a beta of 0.61. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $24.92 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $30.64.

J.Jill (NYSE:JILL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, September 4th. The specialty retailer reported $1.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 business had revenue of $155.24 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $155.13 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.10 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that J.Jill, Inc. will post 3.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

J.Jill Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 2nd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 18th were given a dividend of $0.07 per share. This represents a $0.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.01%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, September 18th. J.Jill’s dividend payout ratio is presently 9.89%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have commented on JILL shares. TD Cowen reduced their price objective on J.Jill from $37.00 to $32.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, September 5th. Telsey Advisory Group restated a “market perform” rating and set a $38.00 price objective on shares of J.Jill in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on shares of J.Jill from $44.00 to $40.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $39.33.

Insider Transactions at J.Jill

In other J.Jill news, CFO Mark W. Webb sold 1,348 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.10, for a total value of $36,530.80. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 105,112 shares in the company, valued at $2,848,535.20. The trade was a 1.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Company 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.