DICK’S Sporting Goods, Inc. (NYSE:DKS) Raises Dividend to $1.21 Per Share

DICK’S Sporting Goods, Inc. (NYSE:DKS) declared a quarterly dividend on Monday, March 10th, RTT News reports. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 28th will be paid a dividend of 1.2125 per share by the sporting goods retailer on Friday, April 11th. This represents a $4.85 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.33%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 28th. This is a 10.2% increase from DICK’S Sporting Goods’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.10.

DICK’S Sporting Goods has raised its dividend payment by an average of 40.1% per year over the last three years and has increased its dividend annually for the last 11 consecutive years. DICK’S Sporting Goods has a payout ratio of 31.4% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities research analysts expect DICK’S Sporting Goods to earn $14.79 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $4.85 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 32.8%.

DICK’S Sporting Goods Price Performance

DICK’S Sporting Goods stock opened at $207.97 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 0.56 and a current ratio of 1.72. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $224.43 and its 200 day moving average price is $216.65. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.87, a P/E/G ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 1.53. DICK’S Sporting Goods has a 1 year low of $182.84 and a 1 year high of $254.60.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on DKS shares. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on DICK’S Sporting Goods from $245.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on shares of DICK’S Sporting Goods from $240.00 to $226.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. DA Davidson dropped their target price on shares of DICK’S Sporting Goods from $280.00 to $273.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. Argus raised their price target on shares of DICK’S Sporting Goods from $255.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Guggenheim reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of DICK’S Sporting Goods in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $245.50.

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 buyback $3.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the sporting goods retailer to buy up to 18.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other news, Chairman Edward W. Stack sold 160,600 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $229.25, for a total value of $36,817,550.00. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 8,362,128 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,917,017,844. The trade was a 1.88 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Lawrence J. Schorr sold 7,333 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $231.55, for a total transaction of $1,697,956.15. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 50,997 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,808,355.35. The trade was a 12.57 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 172,933 shares of company stock valued at $39,655,456 in the last quarter. Insiders own 32.03% of the company’s stock.

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.