Signet Jewelers (NYSE:SIG) Posts Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.23 EPS

Signet Jewelers (NYSE:SIG - Get Free Report) posted its earnings results on Wednesday. The company reported $6.62 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.39 by $0.23, Zacks reports. The firm had revenue of $2.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.33 billion. Signet Jewelers had a return on equity of 28.69% and a net margin of 8.57%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $6.73 earnings per share.

Signet Jewelers Stock Up 3.8 %

Shares of NYSE:SIG traded up $2.16 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $58.46. The company had a trading volume of 5,993,726 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,063,586. The company has a quick ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 1.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The business's 50 day moving average price is $54.52 and its 200 day moving average price is $78.29. The stock has a market cap of $2.54 billion, a PE ratio of 6.73, a P/E/G ratio of 3.43 and a beta of 2.20. Signet Jewelers has a 1-year low of $45.55 and a 1-year high of $112.06.

Signet Jewelers Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 23rd. Investors of record on Friday, April 25th will be given a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 25th. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.19%. This is an increase from Signet Jewelers's previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. Signet Jewelers's payout ratio is currently -168.42%.

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Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have weighed in on SIG shares. UBS Group lifted their target price on Signet Jewelers from $85.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday. StockNews.com lowered Signet Jewelers from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Signet Jewelers from $95.00 to $80.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Telsey Advisory Group reissued a "market perform" rating and issued a $55.00 price target on shares of Signet Jewelers in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Bank of America dropped their price target on Signet Jewelers from $95.00 to $65.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $81.60.

Insider Activity at Signet Jewelers

In other news, Director Eugenia Ulasewicz sold 3,333 shares of the business'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 completion of the sale, the director now owns 22,752 shares in the company, valued at $1,231,565.76. The trade was a 12.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 3.26% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Signet Jewelers

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.