Signet Jewelers Limited (NYSE:SIG) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Shares of Signet Jewelers Limited (NYSE:SIG) have received a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the six analysts that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month target price among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $79.67.

A number of research firms recently weighed in on SIG. CL King began coverage on Signet Jewelers in a research report on Monday, May 5th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $80.00 target price for the company. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Signet Jewelers from $60.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Cfra Research upgraded Signet Jewelers to a “moderate buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated a “market perform” rating and issued a $55.00 price objective on shares of Signet Jewelers in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price objective on Signet Jewelers from $85.00 to $89.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 20th.

Signet Jewelers Stock Performance

NYSE:SIG opened at $66.11 on Monday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $58.05 and a 200 day moving average of $68.27. The company has a market capitalization of $2.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.61, a PEG ratio of 3.43 and a beta of 1.34. Signet Jewelers has a 1-year low of $45.55 and a 1-year high of $112.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 1.55 and a quick ratio of 0.25.

Signet Jewelers (NYSE:SIG) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, March 19th. The company reported $6.62 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.39 by $0.23. The company had revenue of $2.35 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.33 billion. Signet Jewelers had a return on equity of 28.69% and a net margin of 8.57%. Signet Jewelers’s quarterly revenue was down 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $6.73 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Signet Jewelers will post 8.73 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Signet Jewelers Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 23rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 25th will be given a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 25th. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.94%. This is an increase from Signet Jewelers’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. Signet Jewelers’s payout ratio is presently -168.42%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Signet Jewelers

In other Signet Jewelers news, Director Helen Mccluskey bought 1,700 shares of Signet Jewelers stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 25th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $58.86 per share, with a total value of $100,062.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 31,916 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,878,575.76. This represents a 5.63% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO James Kevin Symancyk bought 15,000 shares of Signet Jewelers stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 31st. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $57.45 per share, for a total transaction of $861,750.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 50,710 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,913,289.50. This trade represents a 42.01% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 3.26% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Signet Jewelers

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Grace & White Inc. NY grew its stake in Signet Jewelers by 6.1% in the fourth quarter. Grace & White Inc. NY now owns 207,262 shares of the company’s stock worth $16,728,000 after purchasing an additional 11,900 shares during the period. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund grew its stake in Signet Jewelers by 22.3% in the fourth quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 61,568 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,969,000 after purchasing an additional 11,218 shares during the period. Magnetar Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Signet Jewelers in the fourth quarter worth $2,418,000. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Signet Jewelers in the fourth quarter worth $40,989,000. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp grew its stake in Signet Jewelers by 30.5% in the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 36,655 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,958,000 after purchasing an additional 8,574 shares during the period.

About Signet Jewelers

Signet Jewelers Limited operates as a diamond jewelry retailer. It operates through three segments: North America, International, and Other. The North America segment operates jewelry stores in jewelry stores in malls, mall-based kiosks, and off-mall locations in the United States and Canada primarily under the Kay Jewelers, Kay Jewelers Outlet, Jared The Galleria Of Jewelry, Jared Vault, Zales Outlet, Zales Jewelers, Diamonds Direct, James Allen, Banter by Piercing Pagoda, and Peoples Jewellers names, as well as operates online through its digital banners, James Allen and Blue Nile.