Royce & Associates LP Lowers Stake in The Buckle, Inc. (NYSE:BKE)

Royce & Associates LP decreased its position in The Buckle, Inc. (NYSE:BKE) by 32.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 157,458 shares of the company’s stock after selling 77,184 shares during the quarter. Royce & Associates LP owned 0.31% of Buckle worth $8,000,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Buckle in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Quarry LP grew its position in Buckle by 60.9% in the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 938 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 355 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Buckle by 268.3% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 825 shares of the company’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 601 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in shares of Buckle by 74.1% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,374 shares of the company’s stock worth $70,000 after purchasing an additional 585 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quest Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Buckle in the third quarter valued at approximately $86,000. 53.93% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have commented on BKE. UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of Buckle from $43.00 to $41.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. StockNews.com lowered Buckle from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Dennis H. Nelson sold 20,453 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.42, for a total transaction of $888,069.26. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,698,828 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $73,763,111.76. This trade represents a 1.19 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders sold 76,929 shares of company stock valued at $3,395,733 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 39.80% of the company’s stock.

Buckle Stock Performance

BKE stock opened at $37.69 on Wednesday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $43.68 and its 200 day moving average price is $45.55. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.57 and a beta of 1.17. The Buckle, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $34.67 and a fifty-two week high of $54.25.

Buckle (NYSE:BKE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, March 14th. The company reported $1.53 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.44 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $379.20 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $378.97 million. Buckle had a net margin of 16.21% and a return on equity of 44.11%. The company’s revenue was down .8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.59 EPS.

About Buckle

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.