Kensington Investment Counsel LLC Buys 2,219 Shares of DICK’S Sporting Goods, Inc. (NYSE:DKS)

Kensington Investment Counsel LLC increased its stake in shares of DICK’S Sporting Goods, Inc. (NYSE:DKS) by 60.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 5,885 shares of the sporting goods retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,219 shares during the quarter. Kensington Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings in DICK’S Sporting Goods were worth $1,347,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Marion Wealth Management bought a new stake in shares of DICK’S Sporting Goods during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $545,000. Strategy Asset Managers LLC acquired a new position in DICK’S Sporting Goods in the third quarter valued at approximately $4,325,000. Argus Investors Counsel Inc. acquired a new position in DICK’S Sporting Goods in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $257,000. Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. lifted its holdings in DICK’S Sporting Goods by 402.9% in the third quarter. Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. now owns 15,344 shares of the sporting goods retailer’s stock valued at $3,202,000 after buying an additional 12,293 shares during the period. Finally, Town & Country Bank & Trust CO dba First Bankers Trust CO lifted its holdings in DICK’S Sporting Goods by 78.2% in the fourth quarter. Town & Country Bank & Trust CO dba First Bankers Trust CO now owns 11,495 shares of the sporting goods retailer’s stock valued at $2,631,000 after buying an additional 5,046 shares during the period. 89.83% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at DICK’S Sporting Goods

In related news, Director Lawrence J. Schorr sold 7,333 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $231.55, for a total value of $1,697,956.15. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 50,997 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,808,355.35. This trade represents a 12.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Julie Lodge-Jarrett sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 17th. The shares were 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 directly owns 16,504 shares of the company’s stock, 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. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 172,933 shares of company stock valued at $39,655,456. Corporate insiders own 32.03% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Robert W. Baird cut their price objective on shares of DICK’S Sporting Goods from $235.00 to $230.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. Loop Capital cut their price objective on shares of DICK’S Sporting Goods from $240.00 to $195.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 13th. Citigroup restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $220.00 price objective (down from $230.00) on shares of DICK’S Sporting Goods in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. Telsey Advisory Group restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $250.00 price objective on shares of DICK’S Sporting Goods in a report on Friday. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of DICK’S Sporting Goods from $245.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $245.50.

DICK’S Sporting Goods Stock Up 1.6 %

Shares of DKS stock opened at $197.60 on Tuesday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $227.97 and a 200-day moving average of $217.75. The company has a quick ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 1.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. 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 market capitalization of $16.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.12, a P/E/G ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 1.53.

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

DICK’S Sporting Goods declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, March 11th that permits the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the sporting goods retailer to buy up to 18.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

DICK’S Sporting Goods Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 11th. Investors of record on Friday, March 28th will be given a $1.2125 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 28th. This represents a $4.85 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.45%. This is an increase from DICK’S Sporting Goods’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.10. DICK’S Sporting Goods’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 34.54%.

About DICK’S Sporting Goods

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.