Citi Trends (NASDAQ:CTRN) Reaches New 52-Week High – Time to Buy?

Shares of Citi Trends, Inc. (NASDAQ:CTRN) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $59.11 and last traded at $60.3480, with a volume of 28502 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $56.84.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CTRN has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Citi Trends from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Friday, May 29th. Wall Street Zen raised Citi Trends from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, June 13th. Craig Hallum reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Citi Trends in a report on Wednesday, March 18th. Finally, DA Davidson reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $68.00 price objective on shares of Citi Trends in a research report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Citi Trends presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $68.00.

Citi Trends Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of $521.50 million, a PE ratio of 44.84 and a beta of 1.88. The business’s fifty day moving average is $46.18 and its 200-day moving average is $45.35.

Citi Trends (NASDAQ:CTRN) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, June 2nd. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.32 by $0.59. Citi Trends had a net margin of 1.42% and a return on equity of 2.09%. The firm had revenue of $230.86 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $217.42 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.11 earnings per share.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Citi Trends news, Director Margaret L. Jenkins sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, April 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.91, for a total transaction of $91,820.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 14,163 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $650,223.33. This represents a 12.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 9.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in CTRN. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its holdings in Citi Trends by 143.3% in the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 1,051 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 619 shares during the last quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund boosted its position in Citi Trends by 175.0% during the fourth quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 1,100 shares of the company’s stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 700 shares during the period. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. bought a new position in Citi Trends during the fourth quarter worth about $51,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Citi Trends by 277.1% in the fourth quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,648 shares of the company’s stock worth $68,000 after purchasing an additional 1,211 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Citi Trends by 7,843.8% in the third quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 6,355 shares of the company’s stock worth $197,000 after purchasing an additional 6,275 shares in the last quarter.

Citi Trends Company Profile

Citi Trends, Inc (NASDAQ: CTRN) is an off-price retail apparel chain that focuses on value-priced urban fashion apparel and accessories for men, women, and children. Headquartered in Savannah, Georgia, the company offers a broad assortment of merchandise, including denim, sportswear, activewear, and seasonal styles, complemented by footwear, jewelry, cosmetics, and home goods. Through its purchasing model, Citi Trends sources closeouts, overstocks and canceled orders from name-brand vendors, enabling it to offer trending styles at competitive price points.

The company operates more than 500 stores across the Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States, with typical store footprints of approximately 11,000 square feet.