Dillard’s (NYSE:DDS) Cut to Hold at StockNews.com

Dillard’s (NYSE:DDS) was downgraded by investment analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday.

DDS has been the subject of several other research reports. UBS Group boosted their target price on Dillard’s from $196.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Telsey Advisory Group increased their price objective on shares of Dillard’s from $380.00 to $450.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th.

Dillard’s Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:DDS opened at $437.12 on Tuesday. Dillard’s has a 1 year low of $328.00 and a 1 year high of $510.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.25 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 2.38 and a quick ratio of 1.02. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $464.68 and its 200 day simple moving average is $414.39.

Dillard’s (NYSE:DDS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The company reported $13.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $9.84 by $3.64. Dillard’s had a return on equity of 32.13% and a net margin of 9.55%. The company had revenue of $2.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.49 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $15.44 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Dillard’s will post 33.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Dillard’s

In related news, VP Tom W. Bolin sold 300 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $433.45, for a total value of $130,035.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 1,167 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $505,836.15. The trade was a 20.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 33.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of DDS. State Street Corp increased its position in Dillard’s by 3.7% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 76,515 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,377,000 after purchasing an additional 2,758 shares during the period. Consolidated Planning Corp raised its stake in Dillard’s by 154.5% during the fourth quarter. Consolidated Planning Corp now owns 1,514 shares of the company’s stock worth $654,000 after buying an additional 919 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Dillard’s in the third quarter valued at $125,388,000. Quantbot Technologies LP grew its holdings in Dillard’s by 49.3% during the 3rd quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 5,659 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,171,000 after acquiring an additional 1,868 shares during the period. Finally, Stifel Financial Corp raised its position in shares of Dillard’s by 10.1% in the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 5,105 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,957,000 after acquiring an additional 467 shares in the last quarter. 67.15% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Dillard’s

Dillard’s, Inc engages in the retail of fashion apparel, cosmetics, and home furnishings, and other consumer goods. It operates through the Retail Operations and Construction segments. The Retail Operations segment comprises sells cosmetics, ladies’ apparel, ladies’ accessories and lingerie, juniors’ and children’s apparel, men’s apparel and accessories, shoes, and home and furniture products.