Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI) Receives Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI – Get Rating) have been assigned an average rating of “Hold” from the twelve analysts that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12 month target price among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $19.00.

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on LEVI shares. Bank of America decreased their target price on Levi Strauss & Co. from $18.00 to $16.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 7th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on Levi Strauss & Co. from $20.00 to $19.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 10th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Levi Strauss & Co. from $20.00 to $18.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 10th. Guggenheim cut their price objective on Levi Strauss & Co. from $22.00 to $19.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 10th. Finally, TheStreet cut Levi Strauss & Co. from a “b-” rating to a “c” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 26th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Levi Strauss & Co.

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of LEVI. Dark Forest Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in Levi Strauss & Co. in the 1st quarter worth approximately $39,000. Deutsche Bank AG purchased a new stake in Levi Strauss & Co. in the 4th quarter worth approximately $43,000. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC purchased a new stake in Levi Strauss & Co. in the 1st quarter worth approximately $57,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp lifted its holdings in Levi Strauss & Co. by 60.4% in the 3rd quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp now owns 3,953 shares of the blue-jean maker’s stock worth $57,000 after buying an additional 1,489 shares during the period. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board purchased a new stake in Levi Strauss & Co. in the 1st quarter worth approximately $93,000. 18.76% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Levi Strauss & Co. Stock Performance

Shares of LEVI opened at $13.09 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 1.49 and a quick ratio of 0.74. Levi Strauss & Co. has a 1 year low of $12.84 and a 1 year high of $20.49. The firm has a market cap of $5.19 billion, a PE ratio of 10.73, a PEG ratio of 2.92 and a beta of 1.17. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $15.18 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $16.15.

Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI – Get Rating) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 6th. The blue-jean maker reported $0.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.32 by $0.02. Levi Strauss & Co. had a return on equity of 29.59% and a net margin of 7.79%. The company had revenue of $1.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.61 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.46 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Levi Strauss & Co. will post 1.29 EPS for the current year.

Levi Strauss & Co. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 18th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 4th were issued a dividend of $0.12 per share. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.67%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 3rd. Levi Strauss & Co.’s dividend payout ratio is presently 39.34%.

Levi Strauss & Co. Company Profile

(Get Rating)

Levi Strauss & Co engages in the design, marketing, and sale of apparel products. The company offers jeans, casual and dress pants, tops, shorts, skirts, jackets, footwear, and related accessories. It operates through the following geographical segments: Americas, Europe, and Asia. The company was founded by Levi Strauss in 1853 and is headquartered in San Francisco, CA.