Signet Jewelers (NYSE:SIG) Shares Gap Up After Insider Buying Activity

Signet Jewelers Limited (NYSE:SIG - Get Free Report)'s stock price gapped up prior to trading on Tuesday after an insider bought additional shares in the company. The stock had previously closed at $58.06, but opened at $59.47. Signet Jewelers shares last traded at $59.16, with a volume of 202,504 shares traded.

Specifically, CEO James Kevin Symancyk bought 15,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 31st. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $57.45 per share, for a total transaction 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. This represents a 42.01 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently commented on SIG shares. StockNews.com cut shares of Signet Jewelers from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Telsey Advisory Group reissued a "market perform" rating and issued a $55.00 price objective on shares of Signet Jewelers in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. UBS Group lifted their target price on Signet Jewelers from $85.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Cfra Research upgraded Signet Jewelers to a "moderate buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Signet Jewelers from $95.00 to $80.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Signet Jewelers presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $81.60.

Signet Jewelers Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $2.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.30, a PEG ratio of 3.43 and a beta of 2.20. The company has a 50 day moving average of $54.31 and a 200-day moving average of $76.75. The company has a quick ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 1.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14.

Signet Jewelers (NYSE:SIG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, March 19th. The company reported $6.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.33 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $6.73 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Signet Jewelers Limited will post 8.73 EPS for the current year.

Signet Jewelers Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 23rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 25th will be given a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.34%. This is a boost from Signet Jewelers's previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 25th. Signet Jewelers's dividend payout ratio is presently -168.42%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its position in Signet Jewelers by 40.5% in the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 773 shares of the company's stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 223 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Signet Jewelers by 149.3% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 703 shares of the company's stock valued at $57,000 after purchasing an additional 421 shares during the period. Sterling Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Signet Jewelers by 832.9% during the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 1,362 shares of the company's stock valued at $110,000 after purchasing an additional 1,216 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Signet Jewelers by 32.9% during the fourth quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 1,656 shares of the company's stock valued at $123,000 after purchasing an additional 410 shares in the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV lifted its holdings in Signet Jewelers by 34.6% in the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,740 shares of the company's stock worth $140,000 after purchasing an additional 447 shares during the period.

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.