Build-A-Bear Workshop (NYSE:BBW) Downgraded to Hold Rating by StockNews.com

Build-A-Bear Workshop (NYSE:BBW) was downgraded by analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report released on Thursday.

Separately, Northland Securities lifted their target price on shares of Build-A-Bear Workshop from $36.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, August 30th.

Build-A-Bear Workshop Trading Down 1.8 %

Shares of Build-A-Bear Workshop stock traded down $0.70 during trading on Thursday, hitting $37.61. 209,452 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 195,140. The stock has a market capitalization of $508.49 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.56 and a beta of 1.54. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $34.48 and a 200-day moving average price of $29.76. Build-A-Bear Workshop has a 1-year low of $21.24 and a 1-year high of $40.13.

Build-A-Bear Workshop (NYSE:BBW) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 29th. The specialty retailer reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.57 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $111.80 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $107.90 million. Build-A-Bear Workshop had a net margin of 10.36% and a return on equity of 37.81%. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.57 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Build-A-Bear Workshop will post 3.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Build-A-Bear Workshop announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Wednesday, September 11th that permits the company to buyback $100.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization permits the specialty retailer to reacquire up to 23.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Build-A-Bear Workshop news, Director George Carrara sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.27, for a total value of $90,675.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 18,421 shares in the company, valued at approximately $668,129.67. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, CEO Sharon Price John sold 48,325 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.19, for a total value of $1,700,556.75. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 416,679 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,662,934.01. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director George Carrara sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.27, for a total transaction of $90,675.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 18,421 shares in the company, valued at approximately $668,129.67. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 130,734 shares of company stock worth $4,510,217 in the last three months. 7.90% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Build-A-Bear Workshop

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC boosted its stake in Build-A-Bear Workshop by 9.7% during the first quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 21,970 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $656,000 after acquiring an additional 1,950 shares in the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its stake in Build-A-Bear Workshop by 7.4% during the first quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 63,512 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,897,000 after acquiring an additional 4,384 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in Build-A-Bear Workshop by 0.7% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,047,261 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $31,282,000 after acquiring an additional 6,913 shares in the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in Build-A-Bear Workshop by 25.2% during the first quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 6,782 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $202,000 after acquiring an additional 1,365 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its stake in Build-A-Bear Workshop by 4.3% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 63,055 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,885,000 after acquiring an additional 2,599 shares in the last quarter. 79.30% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Build-A-Bear Workshop

Build-A-Bear Workshop, Inc operates as a multi-channel retailer of plush animals and related products in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Ireland, and internationally. The company operates through three segments: Direct-to-Consumer, Commercial, and International Franchising. Its merchandise comprises various styles of plush products to be stuffed, pre-stuffed plush products, and sounds and scents that can be added to the stuffed animals, as well as range of clothing, shoes and accessories, and other toy and novelty items, including family sleepwear.