Geode Capital Management LLC Has $98.41 Million Stake in Kontoor Brands, Inc. (NYSE:KTB)

Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Kontoor Brands, Inc. (NYSE:KTB) by 1.3% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 1,203,100 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 15,058 shares during the quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Kontoor Brands were worth $98,409,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Quest Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Kontoor Brands during the 2nd quarter valued at about $27,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new position in Kontoor Brands in the third quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Kennebec Savings Bank bought a new position in shares of Kontoor Brands during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $32,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Kontoor Brands by 242.5% during the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 387 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 274 shares during the period. Finally, Sound Income Strategies LLC bought a new stake in shares of Kontoor Brands in the 3rd quarter valued at $48,000. 93.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Kontoor Brands Price Performance

Shares of NYSE KTB opened at $85.70 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $4.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.30, a PEG ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.09, a quick ratio of 1.42 and a current ratio of 2.50. Kontoor Brands, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $52.95 and a fifty-two week high of $94.82. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $86.57 and its 200 day simple moving average is $76.84.

Kontoor Brands (NYSE:KTB) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.37 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.26 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $670.19 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $663.45 million. Kontoor Brands had a return on equity of 73.99% and a net margin of 9.72%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.22 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Kontoor Brands, Inc. will post 4.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kontoor Brands Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 19th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 9th will be paid a dividend of $0.52 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 9th. This is a boost from Kontoor Brands’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.43%. Kontoor Brands’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 46.85%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Kontoor Brands news, CEO Scott H. Baxter sold 119,160 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.60, for a total value of $9,961,776.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 331,916 shares in the company, valued at approximately $27,748,177.60. This trade represents a 26.42 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Thomas L. Doerr, Jr. sold 9,039 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.71, for a total value of $729,537.69. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 18,179 shares in the company, valued at $1,467,227.09. The trade was a 33.21 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 2.60% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently issued reports on KTB shares. Guggenheim increased their target price on shares of Kontoor Brands from $80.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Stifel Nicolaus cut shares of Kontoor Brands from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $89.00 to $93.00 in a research report on Friday, November 1st. UBS Group boosted their target price on Kontoor Brands from $103.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Kontoor Brands from $80.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Barclays boosted their price objective on Kontoor Brands from $83.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Kontoor Brands currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $95.00.

About Kontoor Brands

Kontoor Brands, Inc, a lifestyle apparel company, designs, produces, procures, markets, distributes, and licenses denim, apparel, footwear, and accessories, primarily under the Wrangler and Lee brands. The company operates through two segments: Wrangler and Lee. It licenses and sells apparel under the Rock & Republic brand name.