Build-A-Bear Workshop, Inc. (NYSE:BBW) Stake Trimmed by Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc.

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. cut its position in shares of Build-A-Bear Workshop, Inc. (NYSE:BBW) by 43.9% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 46,072 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 36,095 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Build-A-Bear Workshop were worth $2,121,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Versor Investments LP acquired a new stake in shares of Build-A-Bear Workshop during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $240,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its position in Build-A-Bear Workshop by 77.5% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 180,045 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $8,289,000 after purchasing an additional 78,629 shares in the last quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System acquired a new stake in Build-A-Bear Workshop during the 4th quarter valued at $53,000. Savant Capital LLC raised its stake in Build-A-Bear Workshop by 22.8% during the 4th quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 9,032 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $416,000 after purchasing an additional 1,678 shares during the period. Finally, Bleakley Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Build-A-Bear Workshop by 15.8% in the fourth quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 8,670 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $399,000 after purchasing an additional 1,183 shares in the last quarter. 79.30% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Build-A-Bear Workshop

In other news, CFO Vojin Todorovic sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.08, for a total value of $200,400.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 70,695 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,833,455.60. The trade was a 6.61 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Sharon Price John sold 68,859 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.06, for a total value of $3,171,645.54. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 347,820 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,020,589.20. This represents a 16.53 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 161,666 shares of company stock worth $7,010,081 over the last three months. 7.90% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Build-A-Bear Workshop Stock Performance

BBW opened at $36.12 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $39.22 and a 200-day moving average of $38.62. Build-A-Bear Workshop, Inc. has a 52-week low of $23.63 and a 52-week high of $48.23. The company has a market cap of $485.43 million, a PE ratio of 9.61 and a beta of 1.50.

Build-A-Bear Workshop (NYSE:BBW) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 13th. The specialty retailer reported $1.59 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.52 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $150.45 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $147.53 million. Build-A-Bear Workshop had a net margin of 10.58% and a return on equity of 38.35%. On average, research analysts predict that Build-A-Bear Workshop, Inc. will post 3.71 earnings per share for the current year.

Build-A-Bear Workshop Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 27th will be given a dividend of $0.22 per share. This is a positive change from Build-A-Bear Workshop’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 27th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.44%. Build-A-Bear Workshop’s payout ratio is currently 23.10%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on BBW. StockNews.com downgraded Build-A-Bear Workshop from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. DA Davidson reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $50.00 target price on shares of Build-A-Bear Workshop in a research report on Friday, March 14th. Finally, Northland Securities raised their price objective on shares of Build-A-Bear Workshop from $38.00 to $55.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th.

Build-A-Bear Workshop Company Profile

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.