KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS Takes Position in Guess?, Inc. (NYSE:GES)

KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS bought a new position in shares of Guess?, Inc. (NYSE:GES - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund bought 23,200 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $326,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. KBC Group NV bought a new position in Guess? in the 4th quarter worth approximately $2,349,000. Atlas Legacy Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Guess? in the 4th quarter worth approximately $2,191,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in Guess? by 13.8% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,383,177 shares of the company's stock worth $19,447,000 after acquiring an additional 167,782 shares in the last quarter. Royce & Associates LP lifted its holdings in shares of Guess? by 55.3% in the 4th quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 77,366 shares of the company's stock worth $1,088,000 after acquiring an additional 27,558 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sanctuary Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Guess? by 8,708.5% during the 3rd quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 691,030 shares of the company's stock valued at $13,910,000 after purchasing an additional 683,185 shares during the last quarter. 61.74% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Guess? Trading Down 9.9 %

Shares of GES stock traded down $1.09 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $9.86. The stock had a trading volume of 1,654,414 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,258,991. The firm has a market capitalization of $507.11 million, a PE ratio of 8.28 and a beta of 1.43. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $11.22 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $14.45. The company has a current ratio of 1.54, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18. Guess?, Inc. has a 52-week low of $8.48 and a 52-week high of $28.84.

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Guess? (NYSE:GES - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 3rd. The company reported $1.48 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.41 by $0.07. Guess? had a net margin of 3.19% and a return on equity of 23.29%. The firm had revenue of $932.25 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $916.75 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.01 EPS. The company's revenue was up 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that Guess?, Inc. will post 1.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Guess? declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, March 25th that allows the company to buyback $200.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to purchase up to 38.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically an indication that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Guess? Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 2nd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 12.18%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 16th. Guess?'s payout ratio is 187.50%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. UBS Group lowered their target price on Guess? from $15.00 to $12.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated a "market perform" rating and issued a $13.00 price objective on shares of Guess? in a research report on Friday, April 4th.

Guess? Company Profile

Guess?, Inc designs, markets, distributes, and licenses lifestyle collections of apparel and accessories for men, women, and children. It operates through five segments: Americas Retail, Americas Wholesale, Europe, Asia, and Licensing. The company's clothing collection includes jeans, pants, skirts, dresses, shorts, blouses, shirts, jackets, activewear, knitwear, and intimate apparel.