Shoe Carnival (NASDAQ:SCVL) Shares Gap Down – Here’s Why

Shoe Carnival, Inc. (NASDAQ:SCVL) shares gapped down before the market opened on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $22.65, but opened at $21.40. Shoe Carnival shares last traded at $22.72, with a volume of 136,518 shares changing hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Shoe Carnival from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, November 30th.

Shoe Carnival Stock Down 1.5 %

The business’s 50 day moving average is $25.41 and its 200-day moving average is $33.08. The firm has a market cap of $606.55 million, a P/E ratio of 8.17 and a beta of 1.51.

Shoe Carnival (NASDAQ:SCVL) last released its earnings results on Thursday, March 20th. The company reported $0.54 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.42 by $0.12. Shoe Carnival had a net margin of 6.12% and a return on equity of 12.52%. The firm had revenue of $262.90 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $277.89 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.59 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that Shoe Carnival, Inc. will post 2.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Shoe Carnival Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 21st. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 7th will be paid a dividend of $0.15 per share. This is a positive change from Shoe Carnival’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.14. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 7th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.69%. Shoe Carnival’s payout ratio is presently 19.85%.

Shoe Carnival announced that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, December 12th that allows the company to buyback $50.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to reacquire up to 5.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Institutional Trading of Shoe Carnival

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Shoe Carnival by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,397,109 shares of the company’s stock valued at $46,216,000 after purchasing an additional 8,826 shares during the last quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Shoe Carnival by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC now owns 1,204,443 shares of the company’s stock valued at $39,843,000 after acquiring an additional 29,280 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Shoe Carnival by 10.1% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 880,047 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,112,000 after acquiring an additional 80,871 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Shoe Carnival during the third quarter valued at $37,440,000. Finally, State Street Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Shoe Carnival by 2.2% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 793,318 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,787,000 after acquiring an additional 17,086 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 66.05% of the company’s stock.

Shoe Carnival Company Profile

Shoe Carnival, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a family footwear retailer in the United States. The company offers range of dress, casual, work, and athletic shoes, as well as sandals and boots for men, women, and children; and various accessories. The company also operates stores, and sells its products through online shopping at shoecarnival.com, as well as through mobile app.