Insider Selling: The Buckle, Inc. (NYSE:BKE) CEO Sells 15,340 Shares of Stock

The Buckle, Inc. (NYSE:BKE) CEO Dennis H. Nelson sold 15,340 shares of Buckle stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.32, for a total transaction of $557,148.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,647,695 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $59,844,282.40. This trade represents a 0.92 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link.

Buckle Price Performance

Buckle stock traded up $0.71 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $38.41. 642,544 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 510,424. The stock has a market cap of $1.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.75 and a beta of 1.17. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $43.68 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $45.55. The Buckle, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $34.67 and a fifty-two week high of $54.25.

Buckle (NYSE:BKE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, March 14th. The company reported $1.53 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.44 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $379.20 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $378.97 million. Buckle had a net margin of 16.21% and a return on equity of 44.11%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down .8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.59 EPS.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have commented on the stock. StockNews.com lowered shares of Buckle from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. UBS Group lowered their target price on Buckle from $43.00 to $41.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Buckle

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Quest Partners LLC bought a new stake in Buckle in the third quarter valued at $86,000. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise raised its stake in shares of Buckle by 158.4% during the 3rd quarter. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise now owns 6,054 shares of the company’s stock worth $266,000 after purchasing an additional 3,711 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC boosted its stake in Buckle by 28.3% in the third quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 32,626 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,435,000 after acquiring an additional 7,205 shares during the last quarter. Moran Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Buckle by 1.5% during the third quarter. Moran Wealth Management LLC now owns 76,437 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,361,000 after purchasing an additional 1,109 shares during the period. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Buckle in the 3rd quarter worth about $1,126,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 53.93% of the company’s stock.

About Buckle

The Buckle, Inc operates as a retailer of casual apparel, footwear, and accessories for young men and women in the United States. It markets a selection of brand name casual apparel, including denims, other casual bottoms, tops, sportswear, outerwear, accessories, and footwear, as well as private label merchandise primarily comprising BKE, Buckle Black, Salvage, Red by BKE, Daytrip, Gimmicks, Gilded Intent, FITZ + EDDI, Willow & Root, Outpost Makers, Departwest, Sterling & Stitch, Reclaim, BKE Vintage, Nova Industries, J.B.