Dillard’s (NYSE:DDS) Announces Quarterly Earnings Results

Dillard’s (NYSE:DDS) released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday. The company reported $8.31 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.43 by $1.88, Zacks reports. The firm had revenue of $1.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.41 billion. Dillard’s had a return on equity of 30.55% and a net margin of 8.87%.The business’s revenue was up 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $7.73 EPS.

Dillard’s Stock Down 2.2%

Dillard’s stock traded down $14.43 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $649.63. The stock had a trading volume of 105,972 shares, compared to its average volume of 136,587. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $603.15 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $497.50. Dillard’s has a 12 month low of $282.24 and a 12 month high of $737.73. The company has a current ratio of 2.68, a quick ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. The company has a market capitalization of $10.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.92 and a beta of 1.15.

Dillard’s Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, November 3rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 30th were paid a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 30th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.2%. This is a boost from Dillard’s’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. Dillard’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 3.26%.

Insider Transactions at Dillard’s

In other Dillard’s news, Director J C. Watts, Jr. sold 750 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $594.60, for a total value of $445,950.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 10,250 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,094,650. This trade represents a 6.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 34.80% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Dillard’s

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership acquired a new stake in Dillard’s in the 2nd quarter valued at $399,000. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board lifted its stake in shares of Dillard’s by 57.1% in the second quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 1,100 shares of the company’s stock valued at $460,000 after buying an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Dillard’s by 6,792.3% during the second quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 1,792 shares of the company’s stock valued at $749,000 after buying an additional 1,766 shares during the last quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina increased its position in shares of Dillard’s by 102.6% during the second quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 6,212 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,596,000 after acquiring an additional 3,146 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quantinno Capital Management LP increased its position in shares of Dillard’s by 84.1% during the second quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 2,438 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,019,000 after acquiring an additional 1,114 shares in the last quarter. 67.15% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on DDS. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Dillard’s from $368.00 to $458.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Monday, July 28th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Dillard’s in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Telsey Advisory Group boosted their price target on shares of 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 stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 5th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Dillard’s from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, November 8th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $397.33.

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.