Victory Capital Management Inc. Cuts Stock Holdings in Ralph Lauren Co. (NYSE:RL)

Victory Capital Management Inc. lessened its holdings in Ralph Lauren Co. (NYSE:RL) by 6.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 2,775,364 shares of the textile maker’s stock after selling 187,695 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. owned about 4.29% of Ralph Lauren worth $400,207,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of RL. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in Ralph Lauren by 99.2% during the third quarter. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. now owns 245 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 122 shares during the last quarter. Spire Wealth Management increased its position in shares of Ralph Lauren by 47.9% during the third quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 315 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ralph Lauren during the 4th quarter valued at $45,000. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ralph Lauren in the 3rd quarter worth $46,000. Finally, CWM LLC grew its stake in Ralph Lauren by 25.2% during the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 576 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $67,000 after buying an additional 116 shares during the last quarter. 67.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Ralph Lauren Price Performance

RL traded down $1.57 on Wednesday, hitting $162.07. 287,692 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 980,079. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $176.28 and a 200-day moving average price of $150.41. The stock has a market cap of $10.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.56, a P/E/G ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.53. The company has a current ratio of 2.17, a quick ratio of 1.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. Ralph Lauren Co. has a fifty-two week low of $103.17 and a fifty-two week high of $192.03.

Ralph Lauren (NYSE:RL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 8th. The textile maker reported $4.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.53 by $0.64. Ralph Lauren had a net margin of 8.90% and a return on equity of 25.88%. The company had revenue of $1.93 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.87 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $3.35 EPS. Ralph Lauren’s revenue was up 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Ralph Lauren Co. will post 10.23 earnings per share for the current year.

Ralph Lauren Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 28th were paid a dividend of $0.75 per share. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.85%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 27th. Ralph Lauren’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 34.01%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have weighed in on RL. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Ralph Lauren from $160.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, March 4th. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on Ralph Lauren in a report on Tuesday. They issued a “buy” rating and a $195.00 price target for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on Ralph Lauren from $132.00 to $151.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, February 9th. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $195.00 target price (up from $165.00) on shares of Ralph Lauren in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Ralph Lauren from $188.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 5th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $158.92.

Ralph Lauren Profile

Ralph Lauren Corporation designs, markets, and distributes lifestyle products in North America, Europe, Asia, and internationally. The company offers apparel, including a range of men's, women's, and children's clothing; footwear and accessories, which comprise casual shoes, dress shoes, boots, sneakers, sandals, eyewear, watches, fashion and fine jewelry, scarves, hats, gloves, and umbrellas, as well as leather goods, such as handbags, luggage, small leather goods, and belts; home products consisting of bed and bath lines, furniture, fabric and wallcoverings, lighting, tabletop, kitchen linens, floor coverings, and giftware; and fragrances.