Kontoor Brands (NYSE:KTB) Shares Down 7.1% After Analyst Downgrade

Kontoor Brands, Inc. (NYSE:KTB)’s share price dropped 7.1% during mid-day trading on Monday after Zacks Research downgraded the stock from a strong-buy rating to a hold rating. The company traded as low as $68.87 and last traded at $68.3850. Approximately 146,954 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 82% from the average daily volume of 801,991 shares. The stock had previously closed at $73.65.

A number of other brokerages have also issued reports on KTB. Barclays boosted their target price on Kontoor Brands from $93.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Kontoor Brands from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. UBS Group boosted their target price on Kontoor Brands from $118.00 to $131.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on Kontoor Brands in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. They set a “hold” rating and a $65.00 target price on the stock. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on Kontoor Brands from $84.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Kontoor Brands currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $91.33.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. New York State Common Retirement Fund raised its position in Kontoor Brands by 89.5% during the third quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 32,739 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,612,000 after buying an additional 15,465 shares during the period. Skba Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Kontoor Brands by 14.5% in the third quarter. Skba Capital Management LLC now owns 283,891 shares of the company’s stock valued at $22,646,000 after purchasing an additional 35,980 shares in the last quarter. Fieldview Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Kontoor Brands by 50.8% in the third quarter. Fieldview Capital Management LLC now owns 57,491 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,586,000 after purchasing an additional 19,363 shares in the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC grew its stake in Kontoor Brands by 100.1% in the third quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 139,122 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,098,000 after purchasing an additional 69,609 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital World Investors grew its stake in Kontoor Brands by 8.5% in the third quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 1,276,410 shares of the company’s stock valued at $101,819,000 after purchasing an additional 100,000 shares in the last quarter. 93.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Kontoor Brands Stock Down 3.6%

The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $71.49 and a 200 day simple moving average of $68.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.83, a current ratio of 1.87 and a quick ratio of 1.10. The stock has a market cap of $3.61 billion, a PE ratio of 13.21 and a beta of 0.91.

Kontoor Brands (NYSE:KTB) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $1.06 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.17 by ($0.11). Kontoor Brands had a net margin of 8.30% and a return on equity of 60.17%. The firm had revenue of $613.32 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $784.76 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.20 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 45.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Kontoor Brands has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.600-6.700 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Kontoor Brands, Inc. will post 5.2 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kontoor Brands Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 8th will be paid a $0.53 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 8th. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.2%. Kontoor Brands’s payout ratio is 42.91%.

Kontoor Brands Company Profile

Kontoor Brands, Inc is a global apparel company best known for its Wrangler and Lee denim and lifestyle brands. Established as an independent, publicly traded company in May 2019 following a spin-off from VF Corporation, Kontoor leverages a legacy that dates back to 1889 with the founding of Lee and to 1947 with the introduction of the Wrangler brand. The company focuses on designing, manufacturing and distributing premium, casual and workwear apparel, including jeans, pants, shorts, shirts, jackets and complementary accessories.

Kontoor Brands operates a diversified sales model that combines wholesale partnerships with leading retailers, distribution through e-commerce channels and select direct-to-consumer formats.