Barnes & Noble Education (NYSE:BNED) CAO Gary Luster Sells 1,066 Shares

Barnes & Noble Education, Inc (NYSE:BNED) CAO Gary Luster sold 1,066 shares of Barnes & Noble Education stock in a transaction on Friday, July 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $11.61, for a total transaction of $12,376.26. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 31,934 shares in the company, valued at approximately $370,753.74. This trade represents a 3.23% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Barnes & Noble Education Stock Down 2.2%

Shares of NYSE BNED opened at $12.26 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.71, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. Barnes & Noble Education, Inc has a 12 month low of $5.90 and a 12 month high of $14.75. The firm has a market capitalization of $424.65 million, a PE ratio of 26.08 and a beta of 1.29. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $10.90 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $9.70.

Barnes & Noble Education (NYSE:BNED) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 9th. The specialty retailer reported $0.10 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.07 by $0.03. Barnes & Noble Education had a net margin of 0.98% and a return on equity of 7.92%. The firm had revenue of $267.10 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $267.55 million. Equities analysts expect that Barnes & Noble Education, Inc will post 0.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Barnes & Noble Education Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 30th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 16th will be issued a $0.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 16th. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.6%. Barnes & Noble Education’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 68.09%.

Institutional Trading of Barnes & Noble Education

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Royal Bank of Canada raised its position in Barnes & Noble Education by 261.1% in the 4th quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 3,972 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 2,872 shares during the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of Barnes & Noble Education by 205.5% during the 4th quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 4,326 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 2,910 shares during the last quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Barnes & Noble Education by 13.3% during the 4th quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC now owns 30,215 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $278,000 after acquiring an additional 3,550 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of Barnes & Noble Education by 10.2% in the third quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 51,365 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $511,000 after acquiring an additional 4,770 shares during the period. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company MN raised its holdings in shares of Barnes & Noble Education by 46.2% during the fourth quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 18,065 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $166,000 after purchasing an additional 5,712 shares during the last quarter. 38.51% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have weighed in on BNED shares. Needham & Company LLC upgraded Barnes & Noble Education from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $16.00 target price on the stock in a report on Friday, June 26th. Northland Securities set a $18.50 price target on Barnes & Noble Education in a research report on Friday, June 26th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (e+)” rating on shares of Barnes & Noble Education in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. Wall Street Zen raised Barnes & Noble Education from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Barnes & Noble Education to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 11th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $17.25.

Barnes & Noble Education Company Profile

Barnes & Noble Education, Inc (NYSE: BNED) is a leading provider of educational products and services to the higher education community. The company operates retail campus bookstores under Barnes & Noble College, offering course materials, general merchandise, and digital content. In addition, Barnes & Noble Education delivers educational technology solutions through its digital learning platform and supplemental courseware.

Originally part of Barnes & Noble, Inc, the company completed its spin-off and initial public offering in February 2015 to focus exclusively on college retail and digital learning.