Dillard’s, Inc. (NYSE:DDS) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” from Brokerages

Shares of Dillard’s, Inc. (NYSE:DDS) have received an average rating of “Hold” from the five research firms that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price target among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $511.3333.

DDS has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded Dillard’s from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, November 8th. Zacks Research upgraded Dillard’s from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 28th. UBS Group upped their target price on Dillard’s from $184.00 to $460.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, November 28th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Dillard’s in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Dillard’s from $411.00 to $524.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 25th.

Dillard’s Stock Performance

DDS opened at $626.72 on Wednesday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $635.47 and a 200 day moving average price of $552.61. Dillard’s has a 1 year low of $282.24 and a 1 year high of $741.97. The stock has a market cap of $9.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.01 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 2.19 and a quick ratio of 1.00.

Dillard’s (NYSE:DDS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 13th. The company reported $8.31 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.43 by $1.88. Dillard’s had a net margin of 8.90% and a return on equity of 30.50%. The company had revenue of $1.49 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.41 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $7.73 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Dillard’s will post 33.25 earnings per share for the current year.

Dillard’s Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 2nd. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 31st will be paid a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, December 31st. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.2%. Dillard’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 3.26%.

Insider Transactions at Dillard’s

In related news, Director J C. Watts, Jr. sold 750 shares of Dillard’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $594.60, for a total value of $445,950.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 10,250 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,094,650. The trade was a 6.82% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 34.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Dillard’s

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in Dillard’s by 7.5% in the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 300 shares of the company’s stock valued at $184,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Dillard’s by 1.8% during the second quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,325 shares of the company’s stock worth $554,000 after buying an additional 23 shares in the last quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas raised its position in shares of Dillard’s by 2.3% in the third quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 1,040 shares of the company’s stock valued at $639,000 after buying an additional 23 shares during the last quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV lifted its stake in shares of Dillard’s by 3.1% in the third quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 896 shares of the company’s stock worth $551,000 after buying an additional 27 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Inspire Investing LLC lifted its stake in shares of Dillard’s by 3.5% in the first quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 959 shares of the company’s stock worth $343,000 after buying an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. 67.15% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Dillard’s

Dillard’s, Inc (NYSE:DDS), headquartered in Little Rock, Arkansas, is a U.S.-based department store chain founded by William T. Dillard in 1938. Over more than eight decades of operation, the company has grown from a single store in Nashville, Arkansas, to a prominent retailer with a national footprint. Dillard’s equity is publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker DDS.

The company operates approximately 280 departmental stores across 29 states, offering a broad assortment of merchandise that includes men’s and women’s apparel, accessories, cosmetics, footwear, and home furnishings.