The Buckle, Inc. (NYSE:BKE) Short Interest Update

The Buckle, Inc. (NYSE:BKE - Get Free Report) saw a large decrease in short interest in the month of October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 2,760,000 shares, a decrease of 11.0% from the October 15th total of 3,100,000 shares. Approximately 9.0% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 378,800 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 7.3 days.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Dennis H. Nelson sold 24,666 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.44, for a total value of $1,046,825.04. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,924,811 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $81,688,978.84. This represents a 1.27 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Brett P. Milkie sold 16,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.35, for a total transaction of $661,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 80,170 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,315,029.50. The trade was a 16.64 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 142,931 shares of company stock valued at $6,080,458. 39.80% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Buckle

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Buckle by 0.6% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,311,848 shares of the company's stock worth $173,638,000 after buying an additional 24,051 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Buckle by 4.5% during the 2nd quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 2,100,398 shares of the company's stock worth $77,589,000 after buying an additional 90,190 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of Buckle by 2.2% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,341,866 shares of the company's stock worth $49,566,000 after buying an additional 29,349 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its holdings in shares of Buckle by 5.7% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,338,395 shares of the company's stock worth $58,849,000 after buying an additional 72,532 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in Buckle by 4.1% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,216,954 shares of the company's stock worth $53,509,000 after acquiring an additional 48,436 shares during the last quarter. 53.93% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BKE has been the topic of several research analyst reports. StockNews.com raised shares of Buckle from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. UBS Group raised shares of Buckle from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and increased their price target for the company from $31.00 to $46.00 in a report on Tuesday, November 12th.

Buckle Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE BKE traded down $0.82 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $47.92. The company's stock had a trading volume of 278,056 shares, compared to its average volume of 358,728. The company has a market cap of $2.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.69 and a beta of 1.14. The business's 50 day moving average price is $43.63 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $40.56. Buckle has a fifty-two week low of $34.63 and a fifty-two week high of $49.78.

Buckle (NYSE:BKE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 23rd. The company reported $0.78 earnings per share for the quarter. The firm had revenue of $282.39 million during the quarter. Buckle had a return on equity of 46.17% and a net margin of 16.69%.

Buckle Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 25th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 11th were issued a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 11th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.92%. Buckle's dividend payout ratio is presently 34.15%.

Buckle Company 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.