Barnes & Noble Education (NYSE:BNED) CAO Gary Luster Sells 2,267 Shares of Stock

Barnes & Noble Education, Inc (NYSE:BNED) CAO Gary Luster sold 2,267 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $11.20, for a total transaction of $25,390.40. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 29,667 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $332,270.40. This represents a 7.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

Gary Luster also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Friday, July 10th, Gary Luster sold 1,066 shares of Barnes & Noble Education stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $11.61, for a total transaction of $12,376.26.

Barnes & Noble Education Trading Up 2.1%

NYSE:BNED opened at $11.36 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 1.66 and a quick ratio of 0.64. The firm has a market capitalization of $393.85 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.75 and a beta of 1.27. Barnes & Noble Education, Inc has a one year low of $5.90 and a one year high of $14.75. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $11.98 and a 200-day moving average price of $10.93.

Barnes & Noble Education (NYSE:BNED) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, September 8th. The specialty retailer reported ($0.37) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.48) by $0.11. The company had revenue of $290.60 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $306.66 million. Barnes & Noble Education had a return on equity of 8.77% and a net margin of 1.29%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Barnes & Noble Education, Inc will post 0.79 EPS for the current year.

Barnes & Noble Education Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 29th. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 14th will be issued a $0.08 dividend. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 14th. Barnes & Noble Education’s dividend payout ratio is currently 50.00%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently commented on BNED. Weiss Ratings upgraded Barnes & Noble Education from a “sell (e+)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. Northland Securities set a $18.50 target price on Barnes & Noble Education in a research report on Friday, June 26th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and set a $16.00 target price on shares of Barnes & Noble Education in a research note on Wednesday, September 9th. Wall Street Zen cut Barnes & Noble Education from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, August 8th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $17.25.

Barnes & Noble Education News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Barnes & Noble Education this week:

• Positive Sentiment: The company declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.08 per share, payable October 29 to shareholders of record on October 14. The annualized $0.32 payout represents a yield of approximately 2.9% and signals continued confidence in returning capital to shareholders. Barnes & Noble Education Announces Quarterly Cash Dividend
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst opinion remains mixed. Needham maintains a Buy rating with a $16 price target, while other firms have issued Hold or Sell ratings; the reported consensus is Hold with an average target of $17.25. The company’s latest quarter also showed better-than-expected adjusted loss per share, but revenue missed estimates, limiting the bullish impact.
• Negative Sentiment: CEO Jonathan Shar sold 30,000 shares for approximately $331,200 at an average price of $11.04, reducing his direct ownership by 8.44%. While he still owns 325,285 shares, sizable executive selling can raise concerns about management’s near-term view of the stock. Barnes & Noble Education CEO Jonathan Shar Sells 30,000 Shares
• Negative Sentiment: Chief Accounting Officer Gary Luster separately sold 2,267 shares for approximately $25,390 at an average price of $11.20, cutting his ownership by 7.10%. The two insider sales reported within days of each other may reinforce selling pressure in BNED shares. SEC Filing for Gary Luster Stock Sale

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in BNED. Squarepoint Ops LLC bought a new stake in shares of Barnes & Noble Education in the second quarter worth about $785,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Barnes & Noble Education in the second quarter worth about $510,000. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its stake in Barnes & Noble Education by 119.6% during the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 355,943 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $3,143,000 after buying an additional 193,876 shares during the last quarter. Kanen Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Barnes & Noble Education by 0.7% during the first quarter. Kanen Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,423,782 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $30,232,000 after buying an additional 23,800 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sei Investments Co. purchased a new position in Barnes & Noble Education during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $102,000. Institutional investors own 38.51% of the company’s stock.

Barnes & Noble Education Company Profile

Barnes & Noble Education, Inc (NYSE: BNED) is an education services company that supports colleges, universities and their students across the United States. Through institutional partnerships, the company provides retail, digital and operational solutions designed to support the delivery of course materials and campus-related products and services.

Its Barnes & Noble College business operates physical and online campus bookstores, offering new and used textbooks, textbook rentals, digital course materials, general merchandise, school apparel, supplies, technology products and convenience items.