StockNews.com Upgrades Dillard’s (NYSE:DDS) to “Buy”

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Dillard’s (NYSE:DDS) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report report published on Tuesday morning.

A number of other analysts have also recently issued reports on DDS. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Dillard’s from $194.00 to $198.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Telsey Advisory Group lifted their target price on shares of Dillard’s from $380.00 to $450.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th.

Dillard’s Stock Performance

DDS stock opened at $498.03 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 2.38. The stock has a market cap of $7.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.82 and a beta of 0.88. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $455.92 and a 200 day simple moving average of $407.29. Dillard’s has a 52 week low of $328.00 and a 52 week high of $501.41.

Dillard’s Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 6th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 16th were paid a $25.00 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 5.68%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 13th. Dillard’s’s dividend payout ratio is 2.57%.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Tom W. Bolin sold 300 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $433.45, for a total value of $130,035.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 1,167 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $505,836.15. This represents a 20.45 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 33.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Dillard’s

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in DDS. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Dillard’s by 7.7% in the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 352,006 shares of the company’s stock valued at $151,975,000 after purchasing an additional 25,212 shares during the last quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH boosted its stake in shares of Dillard’s by 10.5% in the 4th quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 211,561 shares of the company’s stock valued at $91,339,000 after purchasing an additional 20,155 shares during the last quarter. Clientfirst Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Dillard’s in the 4th quarter valued at about $48,873,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its stake in shares of Dillard’s by 107.2% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 77,050 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,266,000 after purchasing an additional 39,858 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of Dillard’s by 3.7% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 76,515 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,377,000 after purchasing an additional 2,758 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 67.15% of the company’s stock.

Dillard’s Company Profile

Dillard’s, Inc engages in the retail of fashion apparel, cosmetics, and home furnishings, and other consumer goods. It operates through the Retail Operations and Construction segments. The Retail Operations segment comprises sells cosmetics, ladies’ apparel, ladies’ accessories and lingerie, juniors’ and children’s apparel, men’s apparel and accessories, shoes, and home and furniture products.