Kohl’s Co. (NYSE:KSS) Receives Average Recommendation of “Reduce” from Brokerages

Shares of Kohl’s Co. (NYSE:KSS) have earned an average rating of “Reduce” from the fourteen brokerages that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation and eight have issued a hold recommendation on the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $12.10.

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated a “market perform” rating and issued a $13.00 price objective on shares of Kohl’s in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Guggenheim downgraded shares of Kohl’s from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, December 2nd. Gordon Haskett downgraded shares of Kohl’s from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating and set a $11.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Bank of America decreased their price objective on shares of Kohl’s from $15.00 to $8.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of Kohl’s from $11.00 to $8.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday.

Kohl’s Price Performance

Shares of KSS opened at $8.69 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $966.91 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 3.91 and a beta of 1.92. Kohl’s has a 1-year low of $7.96 and a 1-year high of $29.60. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $11.91 and its 200 day simple moving average is $15.55. The company has a current ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 0.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97.

Kohl’s (NYSE:KSS) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, March 11th. The company reported $0.95 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.72 by $0.23. Kohl’s had a net margin of 1.47% and a return on equity of 6.44%. The business had revenue of $5.18 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.25 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.67 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 9.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Kohl’s will post 1.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kohl’s Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, March 21st will be given a dividend of $0.125 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 21st. This represents a $0.50 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.76%. Kohl’s’s dividend payout ratio is 51.02%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Feeney Siobhan Mc sold 3,827 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $14.05, for a total transaction of $53,769.35. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 133,091 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,869,928.55. This represents a 2.80 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.86% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Kohl’s

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH bought a new stake in Kohl’s during the fourth quarter worth about $2,978,000. CTC Alternative Strategies Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Kohl’s in the fourth quarter worth about $168,000. CSS LLC IL bought a new position in shares of Kohl’s in the fourth quarter worth about $163,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Kohl’s by 13.4% in the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 428,939 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,022,000 after acquiring an additional 50,671 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vident Advisory LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Kohl’s by 9.3% in the fourth quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 11,421 shares of the company’s stock worth $160,000 after acquiring an additional 967 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 98.04% of the company’s stock.

Kohl’s Company Profile

Kohl’s Corporation operates as an omnichannel retailer in the United States. It offers branded apparel, footwear, accessories, beauty, and home products through its stores and website. The company provides its products primarily under the brand names of Croft & Barrow, Jumping Beans, SO, Sonoma Goods for Life, and Tek Gear, as well as Food Network, LC Lauren Conrad, Nine West, and Simply Vera Vera Wang.