Kohl’s (NYSE:KSS) Shares Gap Down – Here’s Why

Kohl’s Co. (NYSE:KSS) shares gapped down before the market opened on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $8.61, but opened at $8.40. Kohl’s shares last traded at $8.39, with a volume of 1,197,501 shares traded.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on KSS shares. Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of Kohl’s from $11.00 to $8.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and issued a $13.00 price target on shares of Kohl’s in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. UBS Group reduced their price objective on Kohl’s from $10.00 to $5.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their target price on shares of Kohl’s from $13.00 to $11.25 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, Bank of America reduced their target price on shares of Kohl’s from $15.00 to $8.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and nine have given a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $12.10.

Kohl’s Stock Performance

The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $11.40 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $15.11. The firm has a market cap of $937.90 million, a PE ratio of 3.81 and a beta of 1.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.12 and a current ratio of 1.05.

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

Kohl’s Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, March 21st will be issued a $0.125 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 21st. This represents a $0.50 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.93%. Kohl’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 51.02%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Kohl’s

In other Kohl’s news, EVP Feeney Siobhan Mc sold 3,827 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $14.05, for a total value of $53,769.35. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 133,091 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,869,928.55. The trade was a 2.80 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.86% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Kohl’s

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. boosted its holdings in Kohl’s by 183.8% during the 3rd quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 1,416 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 917 shares during the period. Vident Advisory LLC lifted its position in shares of Kohl’s by 9.3% during the fourth quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 11,421 shares of the company’s stock worth $160,000 after purchasing an additional 967 shares in the last quarter. Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC boosted its stake in shares of Kohl’s by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC now owns 59,124 shares of the company’s stock valued at $830,000 after purchasing an additional 972 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Kohl’s by 7.6% in the fourth quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 17,526 shares of the company’s stock valued at $246,000 after purchasing an additional 1,232 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Platinum Investment Management Ltd. increased its stake in Kohl’s by 30.7% during the 4th quarter. Platinum Investment Management Ltd. now owns 6,108 shares of the company’s stock worth $86,000 after buying an additional 1,436 shares during the period. 98.04% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Kohl’s

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.