Macy’s (NYSE:M) Cut to “Hold” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com downgraded shares of Macy’s (NYSE:M) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note released on Friday.

A number of other equities research analysts have also commented on the company. Argus upgraded Macy’s to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. UBS Group decreased their target price on shares of Macy’s from $10.00 to $9.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated a “market perform” rating and set a $17.00 price objective on shares of Macy’s in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Guggenheim restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Macy’s in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on Macy’s from $17.00 to $16.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $18.38.

Macy’s Stock Performance

M opened at $16.56 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $4.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.07 and a beta of 2.10. The company has a quick ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $15.79 and its 200-day moving average price is $16.46. Macy’s has a 52-week low of $14.06 and a 52-week high of $22.10.

Macy’s (NYSE:M) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, December 11th. The company reported $0.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.07 by ($0.03). Macy’s had a net margin of 0.73% and a return on equity of 21.99%. The company had revenue of $4.74 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.74 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.21 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Macy’s will post 2.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Macy’s Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.1737 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 13th. This represents a $0.69 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.20%. Macy’s’s dividend payout ratio is currently 116.95%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Macy’s

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in M. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Macy’s by 4.7% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,661,876 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,765,000 after buying an additional 118,626 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its holdings in Macy’s by 4.4% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 4,691,591 shares of the company’s stock valued at $73,611,000 after acquiring an additional 195,880 shares during the last quarter. Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new position in Macy’s in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $594,000. Alerus Financial NA acquired a new position in shares of Macy’s during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $2,144,000. Finally, WINTON GROUP Ltd grew its position in shares of Macy’s by 96.4% in the second quarter. WINTON GROUP Ltd now owns 106,636 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,047,000 after purchasing an additional 52,337 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.36% of the company’s stock.

About Macy’s

Macy's, Inc, an omni-channel retail organization, operates stores, websites, and mobile applications in the United States. The company sells a range of merchandise, such as apparel and accessories for men, women, and kids; cosmetics; home furnishings; and other consumer goods under the Macy's, Bloomingdale's, and bluemercury brands.