Prudential Financial Inc. Has $1.47 Million Stake in The Buckle, Inc. (NYSE:BKE)

Prudential Financial Inc. reduced its stake in The Buckle, Inc. (NYSE:BKE) by 1.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 30,654 shares of the company’s stock after selling 307 shares during the period. Prudential Financial Inc.’s holdings in Buckle were worth $1,469,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in BKE. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its stake in Buckle by 15.8% in the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 1,756 shares of the company’s stock valued at $89,000 after purchasing an additional 240 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP lifted its stake in shares of Buckle by 60.9% in the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 938 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 355 shares during the last quarter. DGS Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Buckle by 6.8% during the 3rd quarter. DGS Capital Management LLC now owns 7,131 shares of the company’s stock valued at $314,000 after acquiring an additional 451 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. grew its position in Buckle by 74.1% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,374 shares of the company’s stock worth $70,000 after acquiring an additional 585 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its position in Buckle by 268.3% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 825 shares of the company’s stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 601 shares during the last quarter. 53.93% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently commented on BKE shares. StockNews.com lowered Buckle from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. UBS Group cut their target price on shares of Buckle from $43.00 to $41.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th.

Insider Transactions at Buckle

In related news, CEO Dennis H. Nelson sold 20,453 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.42, for a total transaction of $888,069.26. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,698,828 shares in the company, valued at $73,763,111.76. This represents a 1.19 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders sold a total of 92,269 shares of company stock worth $3,952,882 over the last three months. 39.80% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Buckle Stock Up 3.1 %

NYSE BKE opened at $35.89 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $1.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.11 and a beta of 0.91. The Buckle, Inc. has a twelve month low of $33.75 and a twelve month high of $54.25. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $40.89 and a 200 day simple moving average of $45.17.

Buckle (NYSE:BKE) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, March 14th. The company reported $1.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.44 by $0.09. Buckle had a return on equity of 44.11% and a net margin of 16.21%. The company had revenue of $379.20 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $378.97 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.59 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down .8% compared to the same quarter last year.

Buckle Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 29th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 15th will be paid a $0.35 dividend. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.90%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 15th. Buckle’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.08%.

Buckle Profile

The Buckle, Inc operates as a retailer of casual apparel, footwear, and accessories for young men and women in the United States. It markets a selection of brand name casual apparel, including denims, other casual bottoms, tops, sportswear, outerwear, accessories, and footwear, as well as private label merchandise primarily comprising BKE, Buckle Black, Salvage, Red by BKE, Daytrip, Gimmicks, Gilded Intent, FITZ + EDDI, Willow & Root, Outpost Makers, Departwest, Sterling & Stitch, Reclaim, BKE Vintage, Nova Industries, J.B.