Aviva PLC Boosts Holdings in Dillard’s, Inc. $DDS

Aviva PLC lifted its stake in shares of Dillard’s, Inc. (NYSE:DDS) by 60.4% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,431 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 915 shares during the quarter. Aviva PLC’s holdings in Dillard’s were worth $1,016,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Fox Run Management L.L.C. raised its position in shares of Dillard’s by 37.2% in the 2nd quarter. Fox Run Management L.L.C. now owns 2,164 shares of the company’s stock worth $904,000 after acquiring an additional 587 shares in the last quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC lifted its position in Dillard’s by 10.3% during the second quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 8,272 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,456,000 after buying an additional 771 shares during the period. Unison Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Dillard’s by 2.3% during the 2nd quarter. Unison Advisors LLC now owns 7,994 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,342,000 after buying an additional 182 shares in the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Dillard’s by 38.5% in the 2nd quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,450 shares of the company’s stock worth $606,000 after buying an additional 403 shares during the period. Finally, Inspire Investing LLC lifted its position in Dillard’s by 217.8% during the 2nd quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 3,048 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,274,000 after acquiring an additional 2,089 shares during the period. 67.15% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Dillard’s Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:DDS opened at $606.46 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.41, a current ratio of 2.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.48 billion, a PE ratio of 16.73 and a beta of 1.15. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $601.33 and its 200-day moving average price is $496.34. Dillard’s, Inc. has a twelve month low of $282.24 and a twelve month high of $637.73.

Dillard’s (NYSE:DDS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 14th. The company reported $4.66 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.79 by $0.87. The business had revenue of $1.51 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.50 billion. Dillard’s had a net margin of 8.87% and a return on equity of 30.55%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $11.09 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Dillard’s, Inc. will post 33.25 EPS for the current year.

Dillard’s Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, November 3rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 30th were issued a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 30th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.2%. This is a positive change from Dillard’s’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. Dillard’s’s payout ratio is currently 3.31%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Dillard’s news, Director J C. Watts, Jr. sold 750 shares of Dillard’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $594.60, for a total transaction of $445,950.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 10,250 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,094,650. The trade was a 6.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 34.80% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Dillard’s in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Wall Street Zen raised Dillard’s from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, November 8th. Telsey Advisory Group lifted their price target on Dillard’s from $450.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, August 15th. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Dillard’s from $175.00 to $184.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 5th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Dillard’s from $368.00 to $458.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 28th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $397.33.

Dillard’s Company Profile

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.