Raymond James Financial Inc. Makes New Investment in Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI)

Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI) in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor purchased 141,604 shares of the blue-jean maker’s stock, valued at approximately $2,450,000.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of LEVI. FMR LLC increased its holdings in Levi Strauss & Co. by 44.6% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 9,420,007 shares of the blue-jean maker’s stock worth $205,356,000 after purchasing an additional 2,907,099 shares in the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its holdings in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. by 119.8% during the fourth quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 1,541,784 shares of the blue-jean maker’s stock worth $26,858,000 after purchasing an additional 840,251 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its holdings in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. by 59.4% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,555,382 shares of the blue-jean maker’s stock worth $33,907,000 after purchasing an additional 579,460 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. by 19.2% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 946,998 shares of the blue-jean maker’s stock valued at $16,383,000 after buying an additional 152,590 shares during the period. Finally, Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd bought a new position in Levi Strauss & Co. in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,415,000. 69.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Levi Strauss & Co.

In other Levi Strauss & Co. news, Director David A. Friedman sold 4,166 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.44, for a total value of $76,821.04. Following the transaction, the director now owns 100,012 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,844,221.28. This represents a 4.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.25% of the company’s stock.

Levi Strauss & Co. Stock Down 1.7 %

Shares of Levi Strauss & Co. stock opened at $15.70 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $17.42 and its 200 day moving average is $17.84. Levi Strauss & Co. has a one year low of $15.44 and a one year high of $24.34. The firm has a market cap of $6.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.20, a PEG ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 1.42 and a quick ratio of 0.80.

Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The blue-jean maker reported $0.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.48 by $0.02. Levi Strauss & Co. had a return on equity of 25.88% and a net margin of 3.32%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Levi Strauss & Co. will post 1.27 EPS for the current year.

Levi Strauss & Co. Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 12th were issued a $0.13 dividend. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.31%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 12th. Levi Strauss & Co.’s payout ratio is 100.00%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Levi Strauss & Co. from $24.00 to $22.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Guggenheim boosted their price objective on shares of Levi Strauss & Co. from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Levi Strauss & Co. from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on Levi Strauss & Co. from $20.00 to $17.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, UBS Group decreased their price target on Levi Strauss & Co. from $26.00 to $25.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $21.27.

About Levi Strauss & Co.

Levi Strauss & Co engages in the design, marketing, and sale of apparel products. The company offers jeans, casual and dress pants, tops, shorts, skirts, jackets, footwear, and related accessories. It operates through the following geographical segments: Americas, Europe, and Asia. The company was founded by Levi Strauss in 1853 and is headquartered in San Francisco, CA.