Dillard’s, Inc. (NYSE:DDS) Receives $511.33 Consensus PT from Analysts

Dillard’s, Inc. (NYSE:DDS) has received a consensus rating of “Hold” from the five ratings firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, two have issued a hold recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price objective among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $511.3333.

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

Dillard’s Stock Up 3.0%

Shares of NYSE:DDS opened at $699.51 on Friday. Dillard’s has a fifty-two week low of $282.24 and a fifty-two week high of $741.97. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $648.60 and its 200 day moving average price is $577.92. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 2.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. The stock has a market cap of $10.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.99 and a beta of 1.20.

Dillard’s (NYSE:DDS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 13th. The company reported $8.31 EPS 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.41 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $7.73 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Dillard’s will post 33.25 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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 given 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 payout ratio is 3.26%.

Insider Transactions at Dillard’s

In other Dillard’s news, Director J C. Watts, Jr. sold 750 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $594.60, for a total transaction of $445,950.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 10,250 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,094,650. This trade represents a 6.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 34.80% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in DDS. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in Dillard’s by 7.5% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 300 shares of the company’s stock valued at $184,000 after buying an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Dillard’s by 1.8% in the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,325 shares of the company’s stock valued at $554,000 after acquiring an additional 23 shares during the period. Teacher Retirement System of Texas raised its position in Dillard’s by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 1,040 shares of the company’s stock valued at $639,000 after purchasing an additional 23 shares during the last quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV boosted its stake in Dillard’s by 3.1% during the 3rd quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 896 shares of the company’s stock worth $551,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares during the period. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in Dillard’s by 6.2% during the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 512 shares of the company’s stock worth $334,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.15% of the company’s stock.

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.