Signet Jewelers Limited (NYSE:SIG) Given Consensus Rating of "Hold" by Brokerages

Shares of Signet Jewelers Limited (NYSE:SIG - Get Free Report) have earned a consensus recommendation of "Hold" from the five brokerages that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $79.60.

SIG has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Cfra Research upgraded shares of Signet Jewelers to a "moderate buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated a "market perform" rating and issued a $55.00 target price on shares of Signet Jewelers in a report on Wednesday, March 19th. Wells Fargo & Company reissued an "equal weight" rating and issued a $70.00 price target (down previously from $80.00) on shares of Signet Jewelers in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. UBS Group raised their price objective on Signet Jewelers from $85.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Finally, Bank of America decreased their target price on Signet Jewelers from $95.00 to $65.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th.

Signet Jewelers Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE:SIG opened at $56.50 on Thursday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $54.10 and a 200-day moving average of $72.58. Signet Jewelers has a one year low of $45.55 and a one year high of $112.06. The stock has a market cap of $2.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.50, a P/E/G ratio of 3.43 and a beta of 1.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 1.55 and a quick ratio of 0.25.

Signet Jewelers (NYSE:SIG - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, March 19th. The company reported $6.62 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.39 by $0.23. Signet Jewelers had a net margin of 8.57% and a return on equity of 28.69%. The company had revenue of $2.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.33 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $6.73 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Signet Jewelers will post 8.73 earnings per share for the current year.

Signet Jewelers Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 23rd. Investors of record on Friday, April 25th will be issued a dividend of $0.32 per share. This is a boost from Signet Jewelers's previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 25th. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.27%. Signet Jewelers's dividend payout ratio is presently -168.42%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Signet Jewelers

In other news, Director Eugenia Ulasewicz sold 3,333 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.13, for a total transaction of $180,415.29. Following the sale, the director now owns 22,752 shares in the company, valued at $1,231,565.76. This represents a 12.78 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO James Kevin Symancyk acquired 15,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 31st. The stock was bought at an average cost of $57.45 per share, with a total value of $861,750.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 50,710 shares in the company, valued at $2,913,289.50. The trade was a 42.01 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 3.26% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Signet Jewelers

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in Signet Jewelers by 5.8% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,550,233 shares of the company's stock valued at $205,830,000 after buying an additional 139,109 shares during the period. Cooper Creek Partners Management LLC raised its stake in Signet Jewelers by 1,046.3% in the 4th quarter. Cooper Creek Partners Management LLC now owns 1,889,413 shares of the company's stock valued at $152,495,000 after acquiring an additional 1,724,592 shares during the period. Anomaly Capital Management LP lifted its holdings in Signet Jewelers by 862.5% during the 4th quarter. Anomaly Capital Management LP now owns 1,762,523 shares of the company's stock valued at $142,253,000 after purchasing an additional 1,579,410 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its position in Signet Jewelers by 18.9% during the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,150,441 shares of the company's stock worth $92,852,000 after purchasing an additional 182,948 shares during the period. Finally, Khrom Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Signet Jewelers by 24.2% in the fourth quarter. Khrom Capital Management LLC now owns 1,149,682 shares of the company's stock valued at $92,791,000 after purchasing an additional 224,339 shares during the last quarter.

Signet Jewelers Company Profile

Signet Jewelers Limited operates as a diamond jewelry retailer. It operates through three segments: North America, International, and Other. The North America segment operates jewelry stores in jewelry stores in malls, mall-based kiosks, and off-mall locations in the United States and Canada primarily under the Kay Jewelers, Kay Jewelers Outlet, Jared The Galleria Of Jewelry, Jared Vault, Zales Outlet, Zales Jewelers, Diamonds Direct, James Allen, Banter by Piercing Pagoda, and Peoples Jewellers names, as well as operates online through its digital banners, James Allen and Blue Nile.

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