Gildan Activewear (NYSE:GIL) Sets New 12-Month High After Dividend Announcement

Gildan Activewear Inc. (NYSE:GIL) (TSE:GIL)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high on Wednesday after the company announced a dividend. The company traded as high as $53.75 and last traded at $53.10, with a volume of 143310 shares. The stock had previously closed at $51.98.

The newly announced dividend which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.226 per share. This is a boost from Gildan Activewear’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 12th. This represents a $0.90 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.67%. Gildan Activewear’s dividend payout ratio is 32.80%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Canaccord Genuity Group upped their price target on Gildan Activewear from $53.00 to $58.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. Canaccord Genuity Group increased their target price on shares of Gildan Activewear from $52.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. TD Securities boosted their price target on shares of Gildan Activewear from $62.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on Gildan Activewear from $58.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on Gildan Activewear from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Gildan Activewear currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $60.00.

Gildan Activewear Trading Down 1.7 %

The company has a market capitalization of $8.24 billion, a PE ratio of 21.67, a PEG ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 1.41. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $49.47 and a two-hundred day moving average of $47.54. The company has a current ratio of 2.31, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81.

Gildan Activewear (NYSE:GIL) (TSE:GIL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 19th. The textile maker reported $0.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.13 by ($0.30). The business had revenue of $822.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $805.75 million. Gildan Activewear had a net margin of 12.26% and a return on equity of 27.49%. Gildan Activewear’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.75 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Gildan Activewear Inc. will post 3.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Gildan Activewear

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio raised its holdings in Gildan Activewear by 262.4% during the 4th quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 45,451 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $2,138,000 after buying an additional 32,911 shares during the last quarter. Vident Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Gildan Activewear during the fourth quarter worth about $402,000. Virtus Investment Advisers Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Gildan Activewear in the fourth quarter worth about $173,000. Twinbeech Capital LP purchased a new position in Gildan Activewear during the 4th quarter valued at about $206,000. Finally, Tidal Investments LLC increased its holdings in Gildan Activewear by 23.5% during the 4th quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 14,712 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $692,000 after purchasing an additional 2,798 shares during the period. 82.83% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Gildan Activewear Company Profile

Gildan Activewear Inc manufactures and sells various apparel products in the United States, North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Latin America. It provides various activewear products, including T-shirts, fleece tops and bottoms, and sports shirts under the Gildan, Gildan Performance, Gildan Hammer, Glidan Softstyle, Gildan Heavy Cotton, Gildan Ultra Cotton, Gildan DryBlend, Gildan HeavyBlend, Comfort Colors, and American Apparel brands.