Signet Jewelers (NYSE:SIG) Hits New 12-Month Low – Here’s Why

Signet Jewelers Limited (NYSE:SIG) reached a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as low as $48.59 and last traded at $48.64, with a volume of 1697804 shares. The stock had previously closed at $52.32.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SIG has been the subject of several analyst reports. Telsey Advisory Group decreased their price objective on Signet Jewelers from $87.00 to $65.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. Bank of America decreased their price target on Signet Jewelers from $95.00 to $65.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Signet Jewelers from $110.00 to $95.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Signet Jewelers from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $95.20.

Signet Jewelers Trading Down 7.0 %

The company has a current ratio of 1.55, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $62.53 and a 200 day simple moving average of $81.30. The company has a market cap of $2.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.60, a PEG ratio of 3.43 and a beta of 2.11.

Signet Jewelers (NYSE:SIG) last released its earnings results on Thursday, December 5th. The company reported $0.24 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.29 by ($0.05). Signet Jewelers had a return on equity of 28.69% and a net margin of 8.57%. The firm had revenue of $1.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.37 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.24 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Signet Jewelers Limited will post 8.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Signet Jewelers Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Investors of record on Friday, January 24th were issued a dividend of $0.29 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 24th. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.38%. Signet Jewelers’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 13.35%.

Insider Activity at Signet Jewelers

In other Signet Jewelers news, Director Eugenia Ulasewicz sold 3,333 shares of Signet Jewelers stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.13, for a total transaction of $180,415.29. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 22,752 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,231,565.76. This trade represents a 12.78 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 3.26% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Signet Jewelers

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of SIG. Grace & White Inc. NY lifted its holdings in Signet Jewelers by 6.1% in the fourth quarter. Grace & White Inc. NY now owns 207,262 shares of the company’s stock valued at $16,728,000 after acquiring an additional 11,900 shares during the period. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund lifted its stake in shares of Signet Jewelers by 22.3% in the 4th quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 61,568 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,969,000 after purchasing an additional 11,218 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its stake in shares of Signet Jewelers by 30.5% in the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 36,655 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,958,000 after purchasing an additional 8,574 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its holdings in Signet Jewelers by 36.3% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 132,070 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,704,000 after buying an additional 35,174 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Meritage Portfolio Management purchased a new position in Signet Jewelers in the fourth quarter valued at $648,000.

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.