Ralph Lauren Co. (NYSE:RL) Stake Boosted by Raymond James & Associates

Raymond James & Associates increased its position in shares of Ralph Lauren Co. (NYSE:RL – Get Rating) by 88.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 32,828 shares of the textile maker’s stock after purchasing an additional 15,387 shares during the quarter. Raymond James & Associates’ holdings in Ralph Lauren were worth $3,469,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. US Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Ralph Lauren in the fourth quarter worth $33,000. Ronald Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in Ralph Lauren by 125.5% in the fourth quarter. Ronald Blue Trust Inc. now owns 433 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 241 shares during the period. South Dakota Investment Council acquired a new stake in Ralph Lauren in the third quarter worth $51,000. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. increased its position in Ralph Lauren by 52.7% in the fourth quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 536 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $56,000 after buying an additional 185 shares during the period. Finally, Ameliora Wealth Management Ltd. acquired a new stake in Ralph Lauren in the third quarter worth $68,000. 66.09% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ralph Lauren Trading Up 5.3 %

NYSE:RL opened at $114.00 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.37, a current ratio of 2.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. Ralph Lauren Co. has a 1-year low of $82.23 and a 1-year high of $128.94. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.39. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $113.62 and a 200 day simple moving average of $113.26.

Ralph Lauren (NYSE:RL – Get Rating) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 25th. The textile maker reported $0.90 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.65 by $0.25. Ralph Lauren had a return on equity of 22.88% and a net margin of 8.01%. The business had revenue of $1.54 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.47 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.49 EPS. Ralph Lauren’s revenue for the quarter was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Ralph Lauren Co. will post 8.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Ralph Lauren Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 31st were given a dividend of $0.75 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 30th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.63%. Ralph Lauren’s payout ratio is presently 40.27%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on RL shares. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on Ralph Lauren from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, February 10th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price target on Ralph Lauren from $97.00 to $114.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 6th. OTR Global raised Ralph Lauren to a “positive” rating in a report on Friday, April 28th. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $140.00 price target on shares of Ralph Lauren in a report on Thursday, February 9th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lowered Ralph Lauren from a “market perform” rating to an “underperform” rating and raised their price target for the company from $96.00 to $100.00 in a report on Friday, January 27th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $129.00.

About Ralph Lauren

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Ralph Lauren Corp. engages in the design, marketing, and distribution of luxury lifestyle products, including apparel, footwear and accessories, home, fragrances, and hospitality categories. The firm offers products under the brands of Ralph Lauren, Ralph Lauren Collection, Ralph Lauren Purple Label, Polo Ralph Lauren, Double RL, Lauren Ralph Lauren, Polo Ralph Lauren Children, and Chaps.