21,819 Shares in Buckle, Inc. (The) $BKE Purchased by Plato Investment Management Ltd

Plato Investment Management Ltd acquired a new stake in Buckle, Inc. (The) (NYSE:BKE) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 21,819 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,171,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Buckle by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,970,767 shares of the company’s stock worth $212,118,000 after buying an additional 89,441 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in shares of Buckle by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,303,606 shares of the company’s stock valued at $76,471,000 after acquiring an additional 13,556 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Buckle by 7.8% in the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,209,869 shares of the company’s stock valued at $70,971,000 after acquiring an additional 87,920 shares during the last quarter. UBS Group AG raised its position in shares of Buckle by 32.6% during the 4th quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 489,306 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,139,000 after acquiring an additional 120,215 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its position in shares of Buckle by 11.6% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 332,167 shares of the company’s stock valued at $19,485,000 after acquiring an additional 34,398 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 53.93% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other Buckle news, SVP Michelle Hoffman sold 16,200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.80, for a total transaction of $887,760.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 29,682 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,626,573.60. The trade was a 35.31% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Kari G. Smith sold 30,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.57, for a total transaction of $1,637,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 83,814 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,573,729.98. This trade represents a 26.36% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 126,200 shares of company stock worth $6,517,932. 39.80% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Buckle Price Performance

NYSE:BKE opened at $52.45 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.67 and a beta of 1.16. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $52.44 and a 200 day simple moving average of $53.72. Buckle, Inc. has a 12-month low of $36.57 and a 12-month high of $61.69.

Buckle (NYSE:BKE) last issued its earnings results on Friday, March 13th. The company reported $1.59 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.51 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $399.14 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $396.45 million. Buckle had a return on equity of 45.18% and a net margin of 16.16%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.53 earnings per share.

Buckle Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 29th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 15th were issued a $0.35 dividend. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, April 15th. Buckle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 33.82%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have weighed in on BKE shares. UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of Buckle from $55.00 to $53.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 16th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Buckle from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Friday, March 20th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Buckle from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, April 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $53.00.

About Buckle

Buckle, Inc is a retailer specializing in casual apparel, footwear and accessories for young men and women. The company is known for its denim-focused collections, offering both private-label lines and curated brand-name merchandise. Its product assortment includes jeans, tops, outerwear, shoes and a variety of accessories such as belts, jewelry and handbags, all aimed at blending contemporary style with everyday comfort.

Founded in 1948 in Kearney, Nebraska, Buckle began as a single clothing store and has since expanded into a nationwide chain.