Macy’s (NYSE:M) Reaches New 1-Year Low – What’s Next?

Macy’s, Inc. (NYSE:M) reached a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as low as $12.48 and last traded at $12.62, with a volume of 448077 shares. The stock had previously closed at $12.81.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley set a $14.00 price target on shares of Macy’s in a report on Monday, March 10th. Benchmark upgraded Macy’s to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Gordon Haskett cut Macy’s from an “accumulate” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, March 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded Macy’s from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $19.00 to $14.00 in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. Finally, New Street Research set a $13.00 price objective on shares of Macy’s in a report on Thursday, March 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $15.30.

Macy’s Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.17, a current ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $14.38 and a 200 day moving average price of $15.28. The stock has a market cap of $3.53 billion, a PE ratio of 21.55 and a beta of 2.07.

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

Macy’s Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a $0.1824 dividend. This is a boost from Macy’s’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $0.73 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.74%. Macy’s’s payout ratio is presently 35.44%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Antony Spring sold 3,124 shares of Macy’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.74, for a total transaction of $42,923.76. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 272,680 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,746,623.20. The trade was a 1.13 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Adrian V. Mitchell sold 3,489 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.74, for a total transaction of $47,938.86. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 116,165 shares in the company, valued at $1,596,107.10. This represents a 2.92 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 7,013 shares of company stock valued at $96,359. Insiders own 2.77% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

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

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.