Ralph Lauren Co. (NYSE:RL) Stake Lowered by Handelsinvest Investeringsforvaltning

Handelsinvest Investeringsforvaltning decreased its stake in Ralph Lauren Co. (NYSE:RL) by 34.2% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,226 shares of the textile maker’s stock after selling 637 shares during the period. Handelsinvest Investeringsforvaltning’s holdings in Ralph Lauren were worth $230,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. New York Life Investment Management LLC increased its position in Ralph Lauren by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. New York Life Investment Management LLC now owns 12,999 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $1,874,000 after buying an additional 82 shares during the period. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Ralph Lauren by 99.2% during the third quarter. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. now owns 245 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 122 shares during the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Ralph Lauren by 8.8% in the 4th quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,313 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $334,000 after acquiring an additional 188 shares during the period. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC lifted its position in Ralph Lauren by 11.0% in the 4th quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC now owns 1,990 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $287,000 after purchasing an additional 197 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Guidance Capital Inc. boosted its stake in Ralph Lauren by 3.7% during the 1st quarter. Guidance Capital Inc. now owns 5,785 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $1,086,000 after purchasing an additional 206 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.91% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, COO Jane Nielsen sold 67,243 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $171.25, for a total transaction of $11,515,363.75. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 44,591 shares in the company, valued at $7,636,208.75. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 11.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Ralph Lauren Price Performance

Shares of RL traded down $1.11 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $167.63. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 20,020 shares, compared to its average volume of 961,855. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 2.29 and a quick ratio of 1.68. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $174.81 and a 200 day moving average price of $167.45. Ralph Lauren Co. has a fifty-two week low of $108.60 and a fifty-two week high of $192.03. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.36, a PEG ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 1.52.

Ralph Lauren (NYSE:RL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 23rd. The textile maker reported $1.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.65 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $1.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.57 billion. Ralph Lauren had a return on equity of 27.90% and a net margin of 9.75%. The firm’s revenue was up 1.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.90 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Ralph Lauren Co. will post 11.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ralph Lauren Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 12th. Investors of record on Friday, June 28th will be given a $0.825 dividend. This is a positive change from Ralph Lauren’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 28th. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.97%. Ralph Lauren’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 33.95%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Ralph Lauren from $244.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 16th. Argus reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Ralph Lauren in a research note on Tuesday. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $195.00 price target on shares of Ralph Lauren in a research note on Thursday, May 23rd. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on shares of Ralph Lauren from $192.00 to $197.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 9th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Ralph Lauren in a report on Tuesday, April 30th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $195.00 price objective for the company. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ralph Lauren has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $170.50.

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.