StockNews.com Initiates Coverage on Macy's (NYSE:M)

StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Macy's (NYSE:M - Free Report) in a research note published on Sunday morning. The firm issued a hold rating on the stock.

Several other equities analysts have also issued reports on M. Evercore ISI cut their target price on Macy's from $22.00 to $17.00 and set an "in-line" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 16th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Macy's from $18.00 to $17.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. Telsey Advisory Group reissued a "market perform" rating and set a $21.00 target price on shares of Macy's in a research report on Wednesday, August 21st. Finally, Argus raised shares of Macy's to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $20.43.

Macy's Price Performance

Macy's stock traded down $0.78 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $15.67. 5,487,372 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,372,529. The stock has a market cap of $4.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.48 and a beta of 2.11. The stock's fifty day moving average is $15.37 and its 200-day moving average is $17.07. The company has a quick ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. Macy's has a 12 month low of $10.59 and a 12 month high of $22.10.

Macy's (NYSE:M - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 21st. The company reported $0.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.30 by $0.23. Macy's had a return on equity of 23.14% and a net margin of 0.80%. The firm had revenue of $4.94 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.06 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.26 EPS. Macy's's quarterly revenue was down 3.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Macy's will post 2.72 EPS for the current year.

Macy's Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.1737 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 13th. This represents a $0.69 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.43%. Macy's's payout ratio is 107.81%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Macy's

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in M. CWM LLC lifted its stake in Macy's by 7.7% during the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 8,398 shares of the company's stock valued at $161,000 after acquiring an additional 598 shares during the period. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Macy's by 1.7% in the second quarter. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC now owns 44,321 shares of the company's stock valued at $851,000 after purchasing an additional 761 shares during the last quarter. Wedmont Private Capital grew its position in Macy's by 6.1% during the 2nd quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 14,403 shares of the company's stock worth $275,000 after purchasing an additional 833 shares during the period. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System raised its stake in shares of Macy's by 0.6% during the 1st quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 142,009 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,839,000 after buying an additional 877 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Gamco Investors INC. ET AL raised its stake in shares of Macy's by 9.3% during the 1st quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL now owns 11,800 shares of the company's stock valued at $236,000 after buying an additional 1,000 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.36% of the company's stock.

Macy's Company Profile

Macy's, Inc, an omni-channel retail organization, operates stores, websites, and mobile applications in the United States. The company sells a range of merchandise, such as apparel and accessories for men, women, and kids; cosmetics; home furnishings; and other consumer goods under the Macy's, Bloomingdale's, and bluemercury brands.