Lazard Asset Management LLC Boosts Stock Holdings in Steven Madden, Ltd. (NASDAQ:SHOO)

Lazard Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Steven Madden, Ltd. (NASDAQ:SHOO) by 70.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 62,191 shares of the textile maker’s stock after acquiring an additional 25,616 shares during the period. Lazard Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Steven Madden were worth $2,644,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of SHOO. Pacer Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Steven Madden during the fourth quarter valued at $72,795,000. First Trust Advisors LP grew its stake in Steven Madden by 36.9% during the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 2,002,228 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $85,135,000 after acquiring an additional 539,738 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Steven Madden during the fourth quarter valued at $13,652,000. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Steven Madden during the fourth quarter valued at $9,399,000. Finally, Trexquant Investment LP grew its stake in Steven Madden by 147.3% during the fourth quarter. Trexquant Investment LP now owns 257,334 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $10,942,000 after acquiring an additional 153,280 shares in the last quarter. 99.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently weighed in on SHOO. Citigroup cut their target price on shares of Steven Madden from $35.00 to $23.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Steven Madden in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Steven Madden in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Steven Madden from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Finally, Loop Capital dropped their price objective on shares of Steven Madden from $40.00 to $35.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $32.00.

Steven Madden Trading Down 1.4%

Steven Madden stock opened at $26.18 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $23.41 and a 200-day moving average price of $34.87. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.90 billion, a PE ratio of 11.14 and a beta of 1.04. Steven Madden, Ltd. has a 12-month low of $19.05 and a 12-month high of $50.01.

Steven Madden (NASDAQ:SHOO) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The textile maker reported $0.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.46 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $551.38 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $557.81 million. Steven Madden had a net margin of 7.68% and a return on equity of 23.41%. The business’s revenue was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.65 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Steven Madden, Ltd. will post 2.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Steven Madden Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 9th will be issued a $0.21 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 9th. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.21%. Steven Madden’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.21%.

Steven Madden Profile

Steven Madden, Ltd. designs, sources, and markets fashion-forward branded and private label footwear, accessories, and apparel in the United States and internationally. It operates through Wholesale Footwear, Wholesale Accessories/Apparel, Direct-to- Consumer, and Licensing segments. The Wholesale Footwear segment designs, sources, and markets various products, including dress shoes, boots, booties, fashion sneakers, sandals, and casual shoes under the Steve Madden, Dolce Vita, Betsey Johnson, Blondo, GREATS, and Anne Klein brands.