Raymond James Financial Inc. Buys Shares of 191,137 Skechers U.S.A., Inc. (NYSE:SKX)

Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Skechers U.S.A., Inc. (NYSE:SKX) during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor purchased 191,137 shares of the textile maker’s stock, valued at approximately $12,852,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its stake in Skechers U.S.A. by 53.1% in the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 689 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $46,000 after acquiring an additional 239 shares during the period. IFP Advisors Inc raised its holdings in shares of Skechers U.S.A. by 62.4% in the 4th quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 825 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $55,000 after purchasing an additional 317 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Skechers U.S.A. in the 4th quarter worth approximately $65,000. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new position in shares of Skechers U.S.A. during the third quarter valued at approximately $67,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Skechers U.S.A. by 20.7% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,208 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $81,000 after purchasing an additional 207 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.96% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, COO David Weinberg sold 36,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.72, for a total transaction of $2,257,920.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 54,499 shares in the company, valued at $3,418,177.28. The trade was a 39.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Robert Greenberg sold 52,600 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.72, for a total value of $3,299,072.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 61,367 shares in the company, valued at $3,848,938.24. This represents a 46.15 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 236,738 shares of company stock valued at $14,700,809. Company insiders own 24.75% of the company’s stock.

Skechers U.S.A. Stock Up 0.6 %

NYSE:SKX opened at $57.45 on Thursday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $66.08 and its two-hundred day moving average is $65.68. The company has a market cap of $8.58 billion, a PE ratio of 13.84, a P/E/G ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 1.21. Skechers U.S.A., Inc. has a twelve month low of $53.79 and a twelve month high of $78.85. The company has a current ratio of 1.97, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01.

Skechers U.S.A. (NYSE:SKX) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The textile maker reported $0.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.73 by ($0.08). Skechers U.S.A. had a net margin of 7.13% and a return on equity of 13.73%. Analysts anticipate that Skechers U.S.A., Inc. will post 4.47 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Skechers U.S.A. from $80.00 to $77.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price target on Skechers U.S.A. from $83.00 to $80.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Raymond James dropped their price objective on Skechers U.S.A. from $80.00 to $75.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of Skechers U.S.A. from $72.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Skechers U.S.A. in a report on Friday, February 7th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Skechers U.S.A. currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $81.25.

About Skechers U.S.A.

Skechers U.SA, Inc designs, develops, markets, and distributes footwear for men, women, and children worldwide. The company operates through Wholesale and Direct-to-Consumer segments. It offers footwear under Skechers Hands Free Slip-ins, Skechers Arch Fit, and Skechers Air-Cooled Memory Foam brands.