Great Lakes Advisors LLC Purchases Shares of 79,765 Carter’s, Inc. $CRI

Great Lakes Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Carter’s, Inc. (NYSE:CRI) during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 79,765 shares of the textile maker’s stock, valued at approximately $3,283,000. Great Lakes Advisors LLC owned approximately 0.22% of Carter’s as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Carter’s by 113.7% during the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,564,457 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $77,267,000 after acquiring an additional 1,364,698 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in shares of Carter’s by 36.6% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,765,205 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $63,121,000 after purchasing an additional 472,786 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley lifted its holdings in shares of Carter’s by 15.7% during the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 1,762,036 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $57,143,000 after purchasing an additional 239,469 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Carter’s by 5.4% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,597,901 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $51,820,000 after purchasing an additional 82,498 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS Group AG lifted its holdings in shares of Carter’s by 29.6% during the 4th quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 1,349,777 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $43,773,000 after purchasing an additional 308,347 shares during the last quarter.

Carter’s Trading Down 2.8%

NYSE CRI opened at $36.17 on Friday. Carter’s, Inc. has a 12-month low of $24.71 and a 12-month high of $44.44. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $39.82 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $37.95. The company has a current ratio of 2.47, a quick ratio of 1.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The stock has a market cap of $1.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.77, a P/E/G ratio of 4.41 and a beta of 0.86.

Carter’s (NYSE:CRI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 31st. The textile maker reported $0.26 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.06 by $0.20. Carter’s had a net margin of 6.55% and a return on equity of 12.78%. The firm had revenue of $615.49 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $605.68 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.17 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that Carter’s, Inc. will post 3.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Carter’s Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 25th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 1st will be paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 1st. Carter’s’s payout ratio is presently 18.73%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CRI has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Carter’s from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $30.00 to $42.00 in a research note on Wednesday, June 17th. Zacks Research cut Carter’s from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, May 25th. Citigroup reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Carter’s in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. Wall Street Zen upgraded Carter’s from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 10th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Carter’s from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Thursday, August 13th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $41.17.

About Carter’s

Carter’s, Inc (NYSE: CRI) is a leading designer and marketer of infant and young children’s apparel in North America. Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, the company’s core business focuses on creating clothing and accessories for babies and children, including bodysuits, sleepwear, layette, outerwear and accessories that blend comfort, safety and style. Carter’s flagship brand is complemented by its OshKosh B’gosh line, which offers heritage-inspired designs and durable fabrics for toddlers and young kids.

The company distributes its products through a diversified platform that includes wholesale partnerships with major department stores and mass merchandisers, direct?to?consumer e-commerce sites, and an extensive network of company-operated retail stores.