Carter's (NYSE:CRI) Shares Gap Up on Analyst Upgrade

Key Points

• Goldman Sachs upgraded Carter's from Neutral to Buy with a $38 price target, sending shares to gap up — opening at $35.72 vs a prior close of $34.58 and last trading around $35.65 on volume of ~227,227.
• Carter's reported a quarterly beat with $1.90 EPS vs. $1.70 expected and $925.45M revenue (vs. $912.36M), and set Q1 2026 guidance of $0.02–$0.08 EPS.
• Despite several recent analyst upgrades (including Citigroup raising its target to $50), MarketBeat's consensus remains Hold with a $37.33 target, while institutional investors like RWWM and AQR have significantly increased their stakes.

Carter's, Inc. (NYSE:CRI - Get Free Report) shares gapped up prior to trading on Thursday after The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded the stock from a neutral rating to a buy rating. The stock had previously closed at $34.58, but opened at $35.72. The Goldman Sachs Group now has a $38.00 price target on the stock. Carter's shares last traded at $35.6450, with a volume of 227,227 shares changing hands.

Several other analysts have also recently commented on the company. Zacks Research upgraded Carter's from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, January 19th. Needham & Company LLC started coverage on Carter's in a research report on Thursday, March 26th. They issued a "hold" rating on the stock. Wall Street Zen upgraded Carter's from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, January 11th. Citigroup upgraded Carter's from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their target price for the company from $34.00 to $50.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, UBS Group raised their target price on Carter's from $33.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Carter's currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $37.33.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Carter's

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of CRI. RWWM Inc. increased its position in shares of Carter's by 44.8% during the 3rd quarter. RWWM Inc. now owns 5,900,170 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $166,503,000 after purchasing an additional 1,824,379 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Carter's by 113.7% during the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,564,457 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $77,267,000 after purchasing an additional 1,364,698 shares during the period. Rubric Capital Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Carter's during the 4th quarter worth $14,918,000. Allianz Asset Management GmbH boosted its stake in shares of Carter's by 43.7% during the 3rd quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 1,201,996 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $33,920,000 after acquiring an additional 365,501 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quantinno Capital Management LP boosted its stake in shares of Carter's by 1,679.7% during the 2nd quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 370,791 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $11,172,000 after acquiring an additional 349,957 shares in the last quarter.

Carter's Trading Up 3.2%

The firm has a market capitalization of $1.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.34 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a current ratio of 2.51. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $36.68 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $33.62.

Carter's (NYSE:CRI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 27th. The textile maker reported $1.90 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.70 by $0.20. The business had revenue of $925.45 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $912.36 million. Carter's had a return on equity of 14.45% and a net margin of 3.17%.The company's revenue was up 7.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.39 EPS. Carter's has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 0.020-0.080 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Carter's, Inc. will post 5.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Carter's Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 13th were paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 13th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.8%. Carter's's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 39.68%.

About Carter's

Carter's, Inc NYSE: CRI is a leading designer and marketer of infant and young children's apparel in North America. Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, the company's core business focuses on creating clothing and accessories for babies and children, including bodysuits, sleepwear, layette, outerwear and accessories that blend comfort, safety and style. Carter's flagship brand is complemented by its OshKosh B'gosh line, which offers heritage-inspired designs and durable fabrics for toddlers and young kids.

The company distributes its products through a diversified platform that includes wholesale partnerships with major department stores and mass merchandisers, direct‐to‐consumer e-commerce sites, and an extensive network of company-operated retail stores.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.