Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC Buys 148,067 Shares of Levi Strauss & Co. $LEVI

Key Points

• Allspring Global Investments boosted its stake in Levi Strauss & Co. by 12.6% in the first quarter, buying 148,067 more shares and bringing its total holding to 1,325,256 shares worth about $25.2 million.
• Several other institutional investors also increased positions, while insiders have been selling shares; total insider sales over the past three months reached 1.24 million shares worth about $28.7 million.
• Levi Strauss recently beat quarterly earnings and revenue estimates, raised its dividend to $0.16 per share, and has attracted mostly bullish analyst ratings with a consensus Moderate Buy and average price target of $27.46.

Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its stake in Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI - Free Report) by 12.6% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,325,256 shares of the blue-jean maker's stock after buying an additional 148,067 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC owned 0.34% of Levi Strauss & Co. worth $25,180,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LEVI. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in Levi Strauss & Co. by 3.8% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 9,320,747 shares of the blue-jean maker's stock worth $193,312,000 after purchasing an additional 342,009 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its holdings in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. by 462.4% during the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 4,839,861 shares of the blue-jean maker's stock valued at $89,489,000 after buying an additional 3,979,223 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. by 44.0% during the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 4,243,680 shares of the blue-jean maker's stock valued at $88,014,000 after acquiring an additional 1,296,474 shares in the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. increased its position in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. by 9.3% during the third quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 3,457,702 shares of the blue-jean maker's stock valued at $80,564,000 after acquiring an additional 294,053 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GW&K Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in Levi Strauss & Co. by 31.5% in the 4th quarter. GW&K Investment Management LLC now owns 2,219,599 shares of the blue-jean maker's stock worth $46,034,000 after acquiring an additional 531,963 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 69.14% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Levi Strauss & Co.

In other news, major shareholder Margaret E. Haas sold 47,721 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.01, for a total transaction of $1,145,781.21. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, major shareholder E. Haas Jr. Family Fund Peter sold 145,662 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.01, for a total transaction of $3,497,344.62. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 145,662 shares in the company, valued at $3,497,344.62. This trade represents a 50.00% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 1,236,803 shares of company stock worth $28,742,192 in the last three months. 1.08% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Levi Strauss & Co. Price Performance

Shares of LEVI opened at $23.98 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $9.23 billion, a PE ratio of 14.81, a P/E/G ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.33. The company has a current ratio of 1.60, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $23.33 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $21.78. Levi Strauss & Co. has a 1-year low of $17.72 and a 1-year high of $25.58.

Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 8th. The blue-jean maker reported $0.28 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.24 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $1.56 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.52 billion. Levi Strauss & Co. had a return on equity of 25.79% and a net margin of 9.66%.The company's revenue was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.22 EPS. Levi Strauss & Co. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.460-1.520 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Levi Strauss & Co. will post 1.54 EPS for the current year.

Levi Strauss & Co. Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 5th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 22nd will be paid a dividend of $0.16 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 22nd. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.7%. This is an increase from Levi Strauss & Co.'s previous quarterly dividend of $0.14. Levi Strauss & Co.'s dividend payout ratio is presently 34.57%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

LEVI has been the topic of several analyst reports. Raymond James Financial upped their price objective on Levi Strauss & Co. from $25.00 to $27.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 2nd. UBS Group reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $34.00 target price on shares of Levi Strauss & Co. in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Barclays boosted their price target on Levi Strauss & Co. from $26.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Wall Street Zen raised Levi Strauss & Co. from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Saturday, April 11th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $28.00 price objective on shares of Levi Strauss & Co. in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Levi Strauss & Co. currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $27.46.

About Levi Strauss & Co.

Levi Strauss & Co is a global apparel company best known for its denim jeans and casual wear. Founded in 1853 in San Francisco by Bavarian immigrant Levi Strauss, the company pioneered the modern blue jean with the introduction of rivet-reinforced work pants. Over its more than 160-year history, Levi Strauss has evolved into a lifestyle brand, offering a broad portfolio that includes denim for men, women and children, as well as tops, outerwear, footwear and accessories.

The company's flagship label, Levi's®, is recognized worldwide for its iconic styles such as the 501® Original Fit Jeans, while additional brands, including Dockers®, Target core metric, and Denizen® by Levi's, cater to diverse price points and consumer segments.

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