Retirement Systems of Alabama Cuts Stock Holdings in Ralph Lauren Co. (NYSE:RL)

Retirement Systems of Alabama lessened its holdings in Ralph Lauren Co. (NYSE:RL) by 4.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 8,761 shares of the textile maker’s stock after selling 370 shares during the quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama’s holdings in Ralph Lauren were worth $1,263,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Platinum Investment Management Ltd. grew its holdings in Ralph Lauren by 13.1% during the third quarter. Platinum Investment Management Ltd. now owns 854 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $99,000 after acquiring an additional 99 shares during the period. Spire Wealth Management grew its stake in shares of Ralph Lauren by 47.9% during the 3rd quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 315 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares during the period. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Ralph Lauren by 99.2% in the 3rd quarter. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. now owns 245 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 122 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Ralph Lauren by 5.8% in the third quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 3,034 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $352,000 after purchasing an additional 166 shares during the period. Finally, Verdence Capital Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Ralph Lauren by 5.8% during the third quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 3,087 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $358,000 after buying an additional 168 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.91% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Raymond James boosted their price target on Ralph Lauren from $135.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on shares of Ralph Lauren from $132.00 to $151.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, February 9th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Ralph Lauren from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 22nd. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Ralph Lauren from $188.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 5th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $195.00 price target (up previously from $165.00) on shares of Ralph Lauren in a research report on Thursday, February 8th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $158.92.

Ralph Lauren Price Performance

RL opened at $165.20 on Thursday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $173.89 and a two-hundred day moving average of $152.27. The company has a quick ratio of 1.54, a current ratio of 2.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. Ralph Lauren Co. has a 52-week low of $103.17 and a 52-week high of $192.03. The company has a market cap of $10.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.73, a P/E/G ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 1.55.

Ralph Lauren (NYSE:RL) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 8th. The textile maker reported $4.17 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.53 by $0.64. The business had revenue of $1.93 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.87 billion. Ralph Lauren had a return on equity of 25.88% and a net margin of 8.90%. The company’s revenue was up 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $3.35 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Ralph Lauren Co. will post 10.23 earnings per share for the current year.

Ralph Lauren Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 28th were issued a $0.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 27th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.82%. Ralph Lauren’s dividend payout ratio is currently 34.01%.

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.