Tracy M. Preston Sells 2,780 Shares of Macy’s, Inc. (NYSE:M) Stock

Macy’s, Inc. (NYSE:M) EVP Tracy M. Preston sold 2,780 shares of Macy’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.68, for a total transaction of $35,250.40. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 4,723 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $59,887.64. The trade was a 37.05 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link.

Macy’s Price Performance

Shares of M stock opened at $12.60 on Tuesday. Macy’s, Inc. has a twelve month low of $12.48 and a twelve month high of $20.70. The company has a current ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 0.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $14.36 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $15.26. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.35 and a beta of 2.07.

Macy’s (NYSE:M) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 6th. The company reported $1.80 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.55 by $0.25. Macy’s had a net margin of 0.73% and a return on equity of 21.99%. The company had revenue of $7.77 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.76 billion. On average, analysts predict that Macy’s, Inc. will post 2.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Macy’s Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.1824 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This is an increase from Macy’s’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. This represents a $0.73 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.79%. Macy’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 35.44%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on M shares. Benchmark upgraded shares of Macy’s to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. StockNews.com raised shares of Macy’s from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Macy’s in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Morgan Stanley set a $14.00 price target on Macy’s in a report on Monday, March 10th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group set a $15.00 price objective on Macy’s in a report on Friday, March 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $15.30.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Macy’s

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Quest Partners LLC bought a new stake in Macy’s during the third quarter valued at about $35,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Macy’s by 4.7% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,661,876 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,765,000 after buying an additional 118,626 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Macy’s by 4.4% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 4,691,591 shares of the company’s stock valued at $73,611,000 after buying an additional 195,880 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its position in shares of Macy’s by 8.4% in the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 362,508 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,688,000 after buying an additional 27,985 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its stake in shares of Macy’s by 8.1% during the 3rd quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 63,751 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,000,000 after acquiring an additional 4,783 shares in the last quarter. 87.36% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Macy’s

Macy’s, Inc engages in the retail of apparel, accessories, cosmetics, home furnishings, and other consumer goods. The firm’s brands include Macy’s, Bloomingdale’s, and Bluemercury. It offers men’s, women’s, and children’s apparel, women’s accessories, intimate apparel, shoes, cosmetics, fragrances, as well as home and miscellaneous products.