Short Interest in Steven Madden, Ltd. (NASDAQ:SHOO) Expands By 28.1%

Steven Madden, Ltd. (NASDAQ:SHOO) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest during the month of March. As of March 13th, there was short interest totaling 4,720,037 shares, a growth of 28.1% from the February 26th total of 3,685,468 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,356,573 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.5 days. Approximately 6.6% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently issued reports on SHOO shares. Needham & Company LLC reduced their price objective on Steven Madden from $50.00 to $41.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of Steven Madden in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. Williams Trading set a $48.00 target price on shares of Steven Madden in a report on Tuesday, March 10th. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $50.00 price target on shares of Steven Madden in a research note on Thursday, February 26th. Finally, BTIG Research reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $50.00 price target on shares of Steven Madden in a report on Thursday, February 26th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $44.00.

Insider Transactions at Steven Madden

In related news, Director Arian Simone Reed sold 3,600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.44, for a total value of $120,384.00. Following the sale, the director owned 8,705 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $291,095.20. This represents a 29.26% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 2.22% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Steven Madden

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. AQR Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Steven Madden in the 1st quarter valued at $752,000. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Steven Madden by 3.5% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 42,919 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $1,143,000 after buying an additional 1,437 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Steven Madden by 1,170.4% during the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 617,049 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $16,438,000 after buying an additional 568,477 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its position in shares of Steven Madden by 5.5% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 202,270 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $5,388,000 after buying an additional 10,603 shares during the period. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC boosted its holdings in Steven Madden by 273.1% in the first quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 157,492 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $4,196,000 after acquiring an additional 115,284 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.88% of the company’s stock.

Steven Madden Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:SHOO opened at $33.92 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $2.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 54.71 and a beta of 1.13. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $37.27 and a 200-day simple moving average of $38.27. Steven Madden has a 52 week low of $19.05 and a 52 week high of $46.88. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26.

Steven Madden (NASDAQ:SHOO) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The textile maker reported $0.48 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.46 by $0.02. Steven Madden had a return on equity of 13.60% and a net margin of 1.76%.The firm had revenue of $753.70 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $758.53 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.55 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 29.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Steven Madden will post 2.66 EPS for the current year.

Steven Madden Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 20th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 11th were given a $0.21 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 11th. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.5%. Steven Madden’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 135.48%.

About Steven Madden

Steven Madden, Inc (NASDAQ: SHOO) is a New York–based designer and marketer of fashion footwear, handbags and accessories. The company’s product portfolio spans a range of contemporary and lifestyle brands for women, men and children, including its core Steve Madden label as well as the Madden Girl and Dolce Vita brands. In addition to footwear, the company licenses its trademarks for use on apparel, eyewear and other fashion accessories.

Steven Madden distributes its products through multiple channels, including wholesale partners, e-commerce platforms and its own brick-and-mortar retail stores.