Los Angeles Capital Management LLC Invests $378,000 in The Buckle, Inc. (NYSE:BKE)

Los Angeles Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in The Buckle, Inc. (NYSE:BKE) during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor purchased 7,437 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $378,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of BKE. Quarry LP increased its stake in Buckle by 60.9% in the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 938 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 355 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Buckle by 74.1% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,374 shares of the company’s stock valued at $70,000 after buying an additional 585 shares during the period. Quest Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Buckle in the 3rd quarter valued at $86,000. KBC Group NV increased its position in shares of Buckle by 72.1% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,773 shares of the company’s stock valued at $90,000 after buying an additional 743 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Buckle during the 4th quarter worth $110,000. Institutional investors own 53.93% of the company’s stock.

Buckle Stock Down 2.6 %

Shares of BKE stock opened at $39.00 on Tuesday. The Buckle, Inc. has a 12-month low of $34.87 and a 12-month high of $54.25. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $46.76 and a 200-day moving average of $45.95. The company has a market capitalization of $1.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.90 and a beta of 1.14.

Buckle Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a special dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 29th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, January 15th were paid a $2.50 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, January 15th. Buckle’s dividend payout ratio is 35.53%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Dennis H. Nelson sold 20,453 shares of Buckle stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.37, for a total value of $1,050,670.61. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,760,187 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $90,420,806.19. This trade represents a 1.15 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director John P. Peetz sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.70, for a total value of $129,250.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 22,123 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,143,759.10. This trade represents a 10.15 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 104,542 shares of company stock worth $5,015,370 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 39.80% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. StockNews.com cut Buckle from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. UBS Group upgraded Buckle from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $31.00 to $46.00 in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th.

Buckle 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.