Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Raises Stock Holdings in DICK’S Sporting Goods, Inc. (NYSE:DKS)

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans boosted its holdings in shares of DICK’S Sporting Goods, Inc. (NYSE:DKS) by 24.5% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 21,694 shares of the sporting goods retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,267 shares during the quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans’ holdings in DICK’S Sporting Goods were worth $4,865,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Wealthfront Advisers LLC bought a new stake in shares of DICK’S Sporting Goods in the fourth quarter worth $1,893,210,000. Holocene Advisors LP bought a new stake in shares of DICK’S Sporting Goods in the 3rd quarter worth about $70,562,000. KBC Group NV raised its stake in shares of DICK’S Sporting Goods by 86.8% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 467,764 shares of the sporting goods retailer’s stock valued at $107,043,000 after purchasing an additional 217,390 shares in the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund lifted its position in shares of DICK’S Sporting Goods by 1,718.2% during the third quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 200,000 shares of the sporting goods retailer’s stock worth $41,740,000 after purchasing an additional 189,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec acquired a new position in DICK’S Sporting Goods in the third quarter worth about $32,093,000. 89.83% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

DICK’S Sporting Goods Trading Up 5.4 %

DICK’S Sporting Goods stock opened at $206.06 on Tuesday. DICK’S Sporting Goods, Inc. has a 12-month low of $182.84 and a 12-month high of $254.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 1.72 and a quick ratio of 0.56. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.79 billion, a PE ratio of 14.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 1.53. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $224.69 and a 200-day simple moving average of $216.65.

DICK’S Sporting Goods (NYSE:DKS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 11th. The sporting goods retailer reported $3.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.47 by $0.15. DICK’S Sporting Goods had a return on equity of 42.00% and a net margin of 8.65%. The firm had revenue of $3.89 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.76 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $3.85 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up .5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that DICK’S Sporting Goods, Inc. will post 13.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

DICK’S Sporting Goods Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 11th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 28th will be given a $1.2125 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 28th. This is a boost from DICK’S Sporting Goods’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.10. This represents a $4.85 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.35%. DICK’S Sporting Goods’s payout ratio is 34.54%.

DICK’S Sporting Goods declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Tuesday, March 11th that authorizes the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the sporting goods retailer to buy up to 18.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

DKS has been the topic of several research reports. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on DICK’S Sporting Goods from $240.00 to $226.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. DA Davidson decreased their price objective on shares of DICK’S Sporting Goods from $280.00 to $273.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. UBS Group raised shares of DICK’S Sporting Goods from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $225.00 to $260.00 in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of DICK’S Sporting Goods in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of DICK’S Sporting Goods from $245.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, DICK’S Sporting Goods has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $245.50.

Insider Buying and Selling at DICK’S Sporting Goods

In related news, Chairman Edward W. Stack sold 160,600 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $229.25, for a total transaction of $36,817,550.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now directly owns 8,362,128 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,917,017,844. This represents a 1.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Julie Lodge-Jarrett sold 5,000 shares of DICK’S Sporting Goods stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.99, for a total transaction of $1,139,950.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 16,504 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,762,746.96. This trade represents a 23.25 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 172,933 shares of company stock valued at $39,655,456. 32.03% of the stock is owned by insiders.

DICK’S Sporting Goods Company Profile

Dick’s Sporting Goods, Inc engages in the retailing of an extensive assortment of authentic sports equipment, apparel, footwear, and accessories. It also offers its products both online and through mobile applications. The company was founded by Richard T. Stack in 1948 and is headquartered in Coraopolis, PA.