Verition Fund Management LLC Buys New Stake in Build-A-Bear Workshop, Inc. (NYSE:BBW)

Verition Fund Management LLC acquired a new stake in Build-A-Bear Workshop, Inc. (NYSE:BBW) in the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor acquired 7,347 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $253,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Pacifica Capital Investments LLC boosted its stake in shares of Build-A-Bear Workshop by 23.4% during the 2nd quarter. Pacifica Capital Investments LLC now owns 1,229,006 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $31,057,000 after acquiring an additional 232,840 shares in the last quarter. De Lisle Partners LLP boosted its position in Build-A-Bear Workshop by 25.9% during the third quarter. De Lisle Partners LLP now owns 732,911 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $25,187,000 after purchasing an additional 150,619 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in shares of Build-A-Bear Workshop by 0.3% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 640,027 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $16,174,000 after buying an additional 2,081 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. raised its stake in shares of Build-A-Bear Workshop by 17.2% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 320,832 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $8,107,000 after buying an additional 47,096 shares during the period. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC lifted its position in shares of Build-A-Bear Workshop by 7.4% during the 2nd quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 256,979 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $6,494,000 after buying an additional 17,772 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.30% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently commented on BBW shares. Northland Securities boosted their price target on shares of Build-A-Bear Workshop from $38.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. DA Davidson raised their price target on shares of Build-A-Bear Workshop from $40.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Build-A-Bear Workshop from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday.

Build-A-Bear Workshop Stock Performance

Shares of BBW stock opened at $41.02 on Friday. Build-A-Bear Workshop, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $21.24 and a fifty-two week high of $47.01. The firm has a market capitalization of $554.51 million, a P/E ratio of 10.91 and a beta of 1.53. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $37.95 and its two-hundred day moving average is $31.47.

Build-A-Bear Workshop (NYSE:BBW) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, December 5th. The specialty retailer reported $0.73 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.70 by $0.03. Build-A-Bear Workshop had a net margin of 10.58% and a return on equity of 38.40%. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.53 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Build-A-Bear Workshop, Inc. will post 3.71 earnings per share for the current year.

Build-A-Bear Workshop Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 27th will be given a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 27th. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.95%. Build-A-Bear Workshop’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.28%.

Build-A-Bear Workshop announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Wednesday, September 11th that permits the company to buyback $100.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization permits the specialty retailer to reacquire up to 23.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity at Build-A-Bear Workshop

In other Build-A-Bear Workshop news, CFO Vojin Todorovic sold 12,635 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, October 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.42, for a total value of $447,531.70. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 90,695 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,212,416.90. This trade represents a 12.23 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Eric R. Fencl sold 17,274 shares of Build-A-Bear Workshop stock in a transaction on Monday, October 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.05, for a total value of $605,453.70. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 137,078 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,804,583.90. This represents a 11.19 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 92,281 shares of company stock valued at $3,311,358. 7.90% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Build-A-Bear Workshop Company Profile

Build-A-Bear Workshop, Inc operates as a multi-channel retailer of plush animals and related products in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Ireland, and internationally. The company operates through three segments: Direct-to-Consumer, Commercial, and International Franchising. Its merchandise comprises various styles of plush products to be stuffed, pre-stuffed plush products, and sounds and scents that can be added to the stuffed animals, as well as range of clothing, shoes and accessories, and other toy and novelty items, including family sleepwear.