Macy’s (NYSE:M) Raised to Buy at Gordon Haskett

Macy’s (NYSE:M) was upgraded by equities researchers at Gordon Haskett from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report issued on Monday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The brokerage currently has a $20.00 target price on the stock. Gordon Haskett’s price target would suggest a potential upside of 20.77% from the stock’s current price.

Several other equities analysts also recently weighed in on M. UBS Group dropped their target price on Macy’s from $10.00 to $9.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Macy’s from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Macy’s from $17.00 to $16.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. Guggenheim reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of Macy’s in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Argus upgraded Macy’s to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $18.56.

Macy’s Stock Performance

Macy’s stock opened at $16.56 on Monday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $15.79 and a 200-day simple moving average of $16.46. The stock has a market cap of $4.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.07 and a beta of 2.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 0.34. Macy’s has a 1-year low of $14.06 and a 1-year high of $22.10.

Macy’s (NYSE:M) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, December 11th. The company reported $0.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.07 by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $4.74 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.74 billion. Macy’s had a net margin of 0.73% and a return on equity of 21.99%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 2.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.21 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that Macy’s will post 2.38 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of M. Marshall Wace LLP lifted its holdings in shares of Macy’s by 1,539.5% during the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 3,534,952 shares of the company’s stock worth $67,871,000 after purchasing an additional 3,319,337 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of Macy’s by 9.8% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 15,489,334 shares of the company’s stock worth $297,385,000 after acquiring an additional 1,379,476 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Macy’s by 18.9% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 4,704,854 shares of the company’s stock valued at $90,333,000 after acquiring an additional 747,542 shares in the last quarter. Barington Capital Group L.P. increased its stake in shares of Macy’s by 550.0% during the third quarter. Barington Capital Group L.P. now owns 650,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,198,000 after acquiring an additional 550,000 shares during the period. Finally, Retirement Systems of Alabama raised its holdings in Macy’s by 57.9% during the third quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 782,391 shares of the company’s stock worth $12,276,000 after purchasing an additional 286,879 shares in the last quarter. 87.36% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Macy’s Company Profile

Macy's, Inc, an omni-channel retail organization, operates stores, websites, and mobile applications in the United States. The company sells a range of merchandise, such as apparel and accessories for men, women, and kids; cosmetics; home furnishings; and other consumer goods under the Macy's, Bloomingdale's, and bluemercury brands.