J.Jill, Inc. (NYSE:JILL) Receives Average Recommendation of “Hold” from Brokerages

J.Jill, Inc. (NYSE:JILL) has received an average recommendation of “Hold” from the seven research firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and two have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $16.50.

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on JILL shares. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and set a $14.00 price target (up from $13.00) on shares of J.Jill in a research note on Thursday, June 11th. William Blair downgraded J.Jill from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 11th. Weiss Ratings upgraded J.Jill from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 18th. TD Cowen raised their target price on J.Jill from $14.00 to $18.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 18th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $16.00 target price on shares of J.Jill in a report on Wednesday, June 10th.

J.Jill Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:JILL opened at $20.07 on Monday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $17.04 and its two-hundred day moving average is $15.19. J.Jill has a 52 week low of $10.40 and a 52 week high of $20.74. The firm has a market capitalization of $300.07 million, a P/E ratio of 14.65 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57.

J.Jill (NYSE:JILL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, June 10th. The specialty retailer reported $0.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.44 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $144.43 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $144.30 million. J.Jill had a return on equity of 24.44% and a net margin of 3.56%. Analysts anticipate that J.Jill will post 2.04 earnings per share for the current year.

J.Jill Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 8th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, June 24th were paid a $0.09 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, June 24th. This represents a $0.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.8%. J.Jill’s payout ratio is currently 26.28%.

Insider Activity at J.Jill

In related news, EVP Mark W. Webb sold 2,891 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.25, for a total value of $58,542.75. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 170,157 shares in the company, valued at $3,445,679.25. The trade was a 1.67% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 4.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its position in J.Jill by 83.1% in the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 1,483 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 673 shares during the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue acquired a new stake in shares of J.Jill during the 4th quarter valued at $56,000. Rhumbline Advisers lifted its position in shares of J.Jill by 11.7% during the 1st quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 7,908 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $154,000 after acquiring an additional 829 shares during the last quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN boosted its stake in shares of J.Jill by 46.2% during the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 8,211 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $113,000 after acquiring an additional 2,595 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quadrature Capital Ltd bought a new stake in shares of J.Jill during the 4th quarter worth $150,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 40.71% of the company’s stock.

About J.Jill

J.Jill is a women’s apparel retailer specializing in modern, versatile clothing and accessories. The company designs and markets a range of products that emphasize comfort and style, including knitwear, woven tops, pants, dresses, outerwear, jewelry, and footwear. Through its in-house design team, J.Jill focuses on creating seasonal collections that appeal to women seeking effortless, mix-and-match wardrobes.

Products are sold through a multi-channel distribution network comprising company-operated boutiques, e-commerce platforms, and catalog sales.