Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Has $352,000 Stake in Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI)

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank grew its position in Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI) by 6.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 21,297 shares of the blue-jean maker’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,319 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank’s holdings in Levi Strauss & Co. were worth $352,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of LEVI. Ceredex Value Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Levi Strauss & Co. in the 4th quarter valued at $24,325,000. M. Kulyk & Associates LLC raised its stake in Levi Strauss & Co. by 2,096.4% in the third quarter. M. Kulyk & Associates LLC now owns 1,252,500 shares of the blue-jean maker’s stock valued at $17,009,000 after buying an additional 1,195,475 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. by 7.6% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 8,626,322 shares of the blue-jean maker’s stock valued at $117,145,000 after buying an additional 610,838 shares during the last quarter. Hudson Bay Capital Management LP bought a new position in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $7,105,000. Finally, UBS Group AG increased its holdings in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. by 121.7% during the 3rd quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 493,505 shares of the blue-jean maker’s stock worth $6,702,000 after acquiring an additional 270,870 shares during the last quarter. 69.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Levi Strauss & Co.

In related news, Director David A. Friedman sold 12,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.23, for a total value of $265,375.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 187,508 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,980,794.84. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, EVP Tracy Layney sold 15,894 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.02, for a total value of $270,515.88. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 41,468 shares in the company, valued at approximately $705,785.36. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director David A. Friedman sold 12,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.23, for a total transaction of $265,375.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 187,508 shares in the company, valued at $3,980,794.84. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 267,212 shares of company stock valued at $5,437,220 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 3.14% of the company’s stock.

Levi Strauss & Co. Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of LEVI stock opened at $22.00 on Friday. Levi Strauss & Co. has a twelve month low of $12.41 and a twelve month high of $22.39. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $19.62 and its 200 day simple moving average is $17.11. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 70.97, a P/E/G ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 1.19.

Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 3rd. The blue-jean maker reported $0.26 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.21 by $0.05. Levi Strauss & Co. had a net margin of 2.05% and a return on equity of 20.68%. The company had revenue of $1.56 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.55 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.34 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Levi Strauss & Co. will post 1.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Levi Strauss & Co. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 23rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 9th will be issued a dividend of $0.12 per share. This represents a $0.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.18%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 8th. Levi Strauss & Co.’s dividend payout ratio is currently 154.84%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on LEVI. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on shares of Levi Strauss & Co. from $17.00 to $24.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Levi Strauss & Co. from $17.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Levi Strauss & Co. from $23.00 to $25.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Levi Strauss & Co. from $17.00 to $20.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, April 5th. Finally, TheStreet upgraded Levi Strauss & Co. from a “c+” rating to a “b-” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 13th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $20.56.

Levi Strauss & Co. Company Profile

Levi Strauss & Co designs, markets, and sells apparels and related accessories for men, women, and children worldwide. The company offers jeans, casual and dress pants, activewears, tops, shorts, skirts, dresses, jumpsuits, shirts, sweaters, jackets, footwear, and related accessories under the Levi's, Dockers, Signature by Levi Strauss & Co, Denizen, and Beyond Yoga brands.