Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund Reduces Stock Position in Signet Jewelers Limited (NYSE:SIG)

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund lessened its holdings in shares of Signet Jewelers Limited (NYSE:SIG) by 12.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 23,111 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,414 shares during the period. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund’s holdings in Signet Jewelers were worth $2,479,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of SIG. Ronald Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in shares of Signet Jewelers by 187.2% in the 3rd quarter. Ronald Blue Trust Inc. now owns 494 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 322 shares during the period. Coronation Fund Managers Ltd. bought a new position in Signet Jewelers in the third quarter worth $2,650,000. Raymond James & Associates lifted its position in Signet Jewelers by 378.9% during the 3rd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 43,040 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,091,000 after acquiring an additional 34,053 shares during the period. Simon Quick Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Signet Jewelers in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $227,000. Finally, GW Henssler & Associates Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Signet Jewelers during the third quarter valued at $234,000.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on SIG. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Signet Jewelers from $128.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. Bank of America decreased their target price on shares of Signet Jewelers from $110.00 to $100.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 21st. Telsey Advisory Group lifted their price objective on Signet Jewelers from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Signet Jewelers from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 19th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Signet Jewelers currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $120.20.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Signet Jewelers news, Director H. Todd Stitzer sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $100.09, for a total value of $1,000,900.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 41,678 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,171,551.02. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Mary Elizabeth Finn sold 5,431 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $89.53, for a total transaction of $486,237.43. Following the sale, the insider now owns 60,416 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,409,044.48. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director H. Todd Stitzer sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $100.09, for a total transaction of $1,000,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 41,678 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,171,551.02. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 55,254 shares of company stock valued at $5,461,294 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 4.54% of the company’s stock.

Signet Jewelers Trading Down 2.5 %

Shares of NYSE:SIG opened at $98.57 on Thursday. Signet Jewelers Limited has a 12 month low of $57.10 and a 12 month high of $109.17. The company has a market capitalization of $4.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.58, a PEG ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 2.13. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $99.91 and its 200 day moving average is $92.95.

Signet Jewelers (NYSE:SIG) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, March 20th. The company reported $6.73 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.33 by $0.40. Signet Jewelers had a return on equity of 32.26% and a net margin of 11.30%. The firm had revenue of $2.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.55 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $5.52 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 6.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Signet Jewelers Limited will post 10.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Signet Jewelers Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 24th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 26th will be issued a $0.29 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 25th. This is a boost from Signet Jewelers’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.18%. Signet Jewelers’s dividend payout ratio is presently 6.14%.

Signet Jewelers Company Profile

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.