Gildan Activewear, Inc. (NYSE:GIL) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Gildan Activewear, Inc. (NYSE:GIL) (TSE:GIL) have been assigned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the sixteen analysts that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1-year price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $79.0714.

GIL has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Scotia raised their target price on Gildan Activewear from $65.00 to $67.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Weiss Ratings downgraded Gildan Activewear from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Monday, May 18th. Zacks Research raised shares of Gildan Activewear from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. TD Securities restated a “buy” rating on shares of Gildan Activewear in a report on Tuesday, June 16th. Finally, Citigroup reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Gildan Activewear in a research report on Tuesday.

Gildan Activewear Stock Up 0.2%

GIL stock opened at $58.19 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $54.22 and its 200 day simple moving average is $59.27. The company has a market cap of $10.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 111.91 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.93. Gildan Activewear has a fifty-two week low of $46.00 and a fifty-two week high of $73.69.

Gildan Activewear (NYSE:GIL) (TSE:GIL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The textile maker reported $1.28 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.11 by $0.17. The firm had revenue of $1.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.61 billion. Gildan Activewear had a return on equity of 21.03% and a net margin of 1.28%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 72.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.97 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Gildan Activewear will post 4.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Gildan Activewear Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 14th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 20th will be paid a $0.249 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 20th. Gildan Activewear’s payout ratio is presently 190.38%.

Institutional Trading of Gildan Activewear

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Webster Bank N. A. purchased a new stake in shares of Gildan Activewear during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Islay Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Gildan Activewear in the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its position in Gildan Activewear by 3,516.7% during the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 434 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 422 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its position in Gildan Activewear by 161.8% during the second quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 555 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 343 shares during the period. Finally, Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd increased its holdings in Gildan Activewear by 14,833.3% during the fourth quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 448 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 445 shares during the last quarter. 82.83% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Gildan Activewear

Gildan Activewear Inc (NYSE:GIL) is a vertically integrated manufacturer and wholesaler of branded basic apparel, including activewear, socks, hosiery and underwear. Headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, the company produces a wide range of products such as T-shirts, fleece garments, sport shirts, performance wear, and shapewear under its Gildan, Anvil, Comfort Colors, Gold Toe, Peds and Silks brands. Leveraging its in-house knitting, dyeing, cut-and-sew and finishing operations, Gildan supplies blank apparel to screen printers, promotional product distributors and major retailers around the world.

Since its founding in 1984 by Glenn J.