Pacific Ridge Capital Partners LLC Buys Shares of 182,469 J.Jill, Inc. $JILL

Pacific Ridge Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of J.Jill, Inc. (NYSE:JILL) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 182,469 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $2,503,000. Pacific Ridge Capital Partners LLC owned 1.21% of J.Jill as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd boosted its stake in J.Jill by 40.0% in the 1st quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd now owns 11,210 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $219,000 after purchasing an additional 3,205 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers increased its holdings in shares of J.Jill by 11.7% in the first quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 7,908 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $154,000 after buying an additional 829 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of J.Jill by 11.9% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 175,286 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $2,567,000 after acquiring an additional 18,576 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its holdings in J.Jill by 39.7% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 19,010 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $278,000 after acquiring an additional 5,406 shares during the period. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP lifted its position in J.Jill by 3.7% in the second quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 23,682 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $347,000 after purchasing an additional 840 shares during the last quarter. 40.71% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently commented on JILL shares. BTIG Research decreased their target price on shares of J.Jill from $21.00 to $18.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 31st. Telsey Advisory Group restated a “market perform” rating and issued a $16.00 price objective on shares of J.Jill in a research report on Tuesday, March 31st. Zacks Research downgraded shares of J.Jill from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 14th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of J.Jill from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, April 4th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of J.Jill in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, J.Jill presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $17.25.

J.Jill Stock Down 6.1%

JILL stock opened at $12.40 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $184.81 million, a P/E ratio of 6.81 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 0.54. J.Jill, Inc. has a 1-year low of $10.40 and a 1-year high of $18.80. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $13.87 and a 200-day moving average price of $14.90.

J.Jill (NYSE:JILL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 31st. The specialty retailer reported ($0.02) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.12) by $0.10. J.Jill had a return on equity of 30.77% and a net margin of 4.68%.The company had revenue of $138.41 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $135.55 million. Equities analysts forecast that J.Jill, Inc. will post 2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

J.Jill Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 28th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 14th were issued a dividend of $0.09 per share. This is an increase from J.Jill’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.08. This represents a $0.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, April 14th. J.Jill’s dividend payout ratio is currently 19.78%.

About J.Jill

J.Jill is a women’s apparel retailer specializing in modern, versatile clothing and accessories. The company designs and markets a range of products that emphasize comfort and style, including knitwear, woven tops, pants, dresses, outerwear, jewelry, and footwear. Through its in-house design team, J.Jill focuses on creating seasonal collections that appeal to women seeking effortless, mix-and-match wardrobes.

Products are sold through a multi-channel distribution network comprising company-operated boutiques, e-commerce platforms, and catalog sales.