Ralph Lauren (NYSE:RL) Price Target Raised to $300.00

Ralph Lauren (NYSE:RL) had its target price raised by Wells Fargo & Company from $275.00 to $300.00 in a report published on Friday morning, Marketbeat reports. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an overweight rating on the textile maker’s stock.

RL has been the subject of a number of other research reports. BNP Paribas raised Ralph Lauren to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Cfra Research downgraded Ralph Lauren from a “hold” rating to a “moderate sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. Cowen reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Ralph Lauren in a report on Thursday. Citigroup raised their target price on Ralph Lauren from $250.00 to $295.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, Guggenheim raised their target price on Ralph Lauren from $285.00 to $310.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $292.88.

Ralph Lauren Price Performance

Shares of NYSE RL opened at $273.92 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 1.76 and a quick ratio of 1.31. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $228.32 and a 200 day moving average price of $235.88. Ralph Lauren has a 1-year low of $155.96 and a 1-year high of $289.33. The company has a market cap of $16.92 billion, a PE ratio of 24.99, a P/E/G ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 1.44.

Ralph Lauren (NYSE:RL) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 22nd. The textile maker reported $2.27 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.00 by $0.27. Ralph Lauren had a return on equity of 30.88% and a net margin of 10.14%. The company had revenue of $1.70 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.64 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.71 earnings per share. Ralph Lauren’s quarterly revenue was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that Ralph Lauren will post 12.01 EPS for the current year.

Ralph Lauren Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 11th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 27th will be given a $0.9125 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 27th. This represents a $3.65 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.33%. This is a boost from Ralph Lauren’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. Ralph Lauren’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 30.11%.

Ralph Lauren declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Thursday, May 22nd that permits the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the textile maker to reacquire up to 8.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Institutional Trading of Ralph Lauren

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB increased its position in Ralph Lauren by 93.7% during the 1st quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 122 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in Ralph Lauren by 1,270.0% during the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 137 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 127 shares in the last quarter. Sentry Investment Management LLC increased its position in Ralph Lauren by 178.0% during the 1st quarter. Sentry Investment Management LLC now owns 139 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares in the last quarter. Banque Transatlantique SA purchased a new stake in Ralph Lauren during the 1st quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Brooklyn Investment Group increased its position in Ralph Lauren by 180.3% during the 1st quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 171 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.91% of the company’s stock.

About Ralph Lauren

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, floor coverings, lighting, tabletop, kitchen linens, floor coverings, dining, decorative accessories, and giftware; and fragrances.