Vanguard Group Inc. Sells 125,971 Shares of The Buckle, Inc. (NYSE:BKE)

Vanguard Group Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of The Buckle, Inc. (NYSE:BKE - Free Report) by 3.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,953,827 shares of the company's stock after selling 125,971 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned approximately 7.79% of Buckle worth $200,894,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in BKE. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Buckle during the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Quarry LP boosted its stake in Buckle by 60.9% during the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 938 shares of the company's stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 355 shares during the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in Buckle by 268.3% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 825 shares of the company's stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 601 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its stake in Buckle by 74.1% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,374 shares of the company's stock valued at $70,000 after purchasing an additional 585 shares during the last quarter. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its stake in Buckle by 15.8% during the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 1,756 shares of the company's stock valued at $89,000 after purchasing an additional 240 shares during the last quarter. 53.93% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Dennis H. Nelson sold 15,340 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.32, for a total value of $557,148.80. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,647,695 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $59,844,282.40. This trade represents a 0.92 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In the last three months, insiders have sold 71,816 shares of company stock valued at $2,898,120. 39.80% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have commented on BKE. StockNews.com downgraded Buckle from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. UBS Group lowered their price target on Buckle from $43.00 to $41.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 18th.

Buckle Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE BKE traded down $0.42 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $36.00. 112,111 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 441,978. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $39.63 and a two-hundred day moving average of $44.85. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.14 and a beta of 0.91. The Buckle, Inc. has a one year low of $33.12 and a one year high of $54.25.

Buckle (NYSE:BKE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, March 14th. The company reported $1.53 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.44 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $379.20 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $378.97 million. Buckle had a return on equity of 44.11% and a net margin of 16.21%. The company's revenue was down .8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.59 EPS.

Buckle Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 29th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 15th will be issued a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 15th. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.89%. Buckle's dividend payout ratio is currently 36.08%.

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.