GMT Capital Corp Sells 177,100 Shares of Signet Jewelers Limited (NYSE:SIG)

GMT Capital Corp reduced its position in shares of Signet Jewelers Limited (NYSE:SIG) by 58.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 125,300 shares of the company’s stock after selling 177,100 shares during the period. Signet Jewelers makes up 0.5% of GMT Capital Corp’s portfolio, making the stock its 24th biggest holding. GMT Capital Corp’s holdings in Signet Jewelers were worth $10,113,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. HighTower Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Signet Jewelers during the third quarter worth about $225,000. Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Signet Jewelers during the third quarter worth about $210,000. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in shares of Signet Jewelers by 0.9% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 34,122 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,330,000 after purchasing an additional 288 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in Signet Jewelers by 1.1% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 310,852 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,061,000 after purchasing an additional 3,238 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB raised its stake in Signet Jewelers by 36.3% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 132,070 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,704,000 after purchasing an additional 35,174 shares in the last quarter.

Signet Jewelers Stock Up 7.3 %

Shares of NYSE:SIG opened at $56.25 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.43 and a beta of 1.63. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $54.04 and its 200-day moving average price is $72.69. The company has a current ratio of 1.55, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. Signet Jewelers Limited has a 12-month low of $45.55 and a 12-month high of $112.06.

Signet Jewelers (NYSE:SIG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, March 19th. The company reported $6.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.39 by $0.23. Signet Jewelers had a return on equity of 28.69% and a net margin of 8.57%. The business had revenue of $2.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.33 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $6.73 EPS. Signet Jewelers’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Signet Jewelers Limited will post 8.73 earnings per share for the current year.

Signet Jewelers Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 23rd. Investors of record on Friday, April 25th will be paid a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.28%. This is an increase from Signet Jewelers’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 25th. Signet Jewelers’s payout ratio is presently -168.42%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on SIG shares. Telsey Advisory Group reissued a “market perform” rating and issued a $55.00 price target on shares of Signet Jewelers in a report on Wednesday, March 19th. Cfra Research raised Signet Jewelers to a “moderate buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Wells Fargo & Company restated an “equal weight” rating and set a $70.00 price target (down previously from $80.00) on shares of Signet Jewelers in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Bank of America cut their price objective on Signet Jewelers from $95.00 to $65.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. Finally, UBS Group raised their price objective on Signet Jewelers from $85.00 to $89.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Signet Jewelers currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $79.60.

Insider Activity at Signet Jewelers

In other Signet Jewelers news, CEO James Kevin Symancyk purchased 15,000 shares of Signet Jewelers stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 31st. The shares were bought at an average price of $57.45 per share, for a total transaction of $861,750.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now directly owns 50,710 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,913,289.50. This trade represents a 42.01 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Eugenia Ulasewicz sold 3,333 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.13, for a total value of $180,415.29. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 22,752 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,231,565.76. This trade represents a 12.78 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 3.26% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About Signet Jewelers

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.