Ralph Lauren Co. (NYSE:RL) Shares Purchased by Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC

Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Ralph Lauren Co. (NYSE:RL) by 26.9% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 14,740 shares of the textile maker’s stock after buying an additional 3,120 shares during the period. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Ralph Lauren were worth $3,405,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Huntington National Bank raised its holdings in shares of Ralph Lauren by 86.6% in the 3rd quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 222 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares during the period. True Wealth Design LLC raised its holdings in shares of Ralph Lauren by 8,933.3% in the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 271 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 268 shares during the period. AM Squared Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Ralph Lauren in the 3rd quarter worth about $58,000. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its holdings in shares of Ralph Lauren by 333.3% in the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 351 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $81,000 after purchasing an additional 270 shares during the period. Finally, Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Ralph Lauren in the 3rd quarter worth about $86,000. 67.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently commented on RL. Argus upgraded Ralph Lauren from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $250.00 target price on the stock in a report on Tuesday, December 31st. Needham & Company LLC began coverage on Ralph Lauren in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. They set a “buy” rating and a $310.00 target price on the stock. UBS Group raised their target price on Ralph Lauren from $332.00 to $348.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Ralph Lauren from $225.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on Ralph Lauren from $285.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $279.33.

Ralph Lauren Price Performance

RL stock opened at $282.93 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.18, a current ratio of 1.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. Ralph Lauren Co. has a 52-week low of $155.96 and a 52-week high of $289.33. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $243.26 and its two-hundred day moving average is $210.11. The company has a market capitalization of $17.57 billion, a PE ratio of 25.82, a P/E/G ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 1.49.

Ralph Lauren (NYSE:RL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The textile maker reported $4.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.46 by $0.36. Ralph Lauren had a return on equity of 30.88% and a net margin of 10.14%. Analysts predict that Ralph Lauren Co. will post 11.73 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ralph Lauren Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 27th were given a $0.825 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 27th. This represents a $3.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.17%. Ralph Lauren’s payout ratio is 30.11%.

About Ralph Lauren

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, floor coverings, lighting, tabletop, kitchen linens, floor coverings, dining, decorative accessories, and giftware; and fragrances.