Asset Management One Co. Ltd. Sells 103,057 Shares of Levi Strauss & Co. $LEVI

Key Points

• Asset Management One Co. Ltd. cut its stake in Levi Strauss by 94.5%, selling 103,057 shares in Q4 and retaining 5,944 shares valued at about $125,000.
• Company insiders have been selling heavily — EVP Jason Gowans sold 40,000 shares at $21.83 and EVP Harmit J. Singh sold 121,767 shares at $23.52 — with insiders offloading a total of 281,108 shares worth $6.46M, leaving insiders owning 1.08%.
• Levi beat the quarter's estimates (EPS $0.42 vs $0.37; revenue $1.74B, +14.1% YoY), announced a quarterly dividend of $0.14 (annualized $0.56, ~2.5% yield), and holds a consensus rating of Moderate Buy with a ~$26.77 price target.

Asset Management One Co. Ltd. decreased its stake in Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI - Free Report) by 94.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,944 shares of the blue-jean maker's stock after selling 103,057 shares during the period. Asset Management One Co. Ltd.'s holdings in Levi Strauss & Co. were worth $125,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of LEVI. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its holdings in Levi Strauss & Co. by 140.7% in the 2nd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 1,425 shares of the blue-jean maker's stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 833 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE boosted its stake in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. by 260.5% in the 3rd quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 1,121 shares of the blue-jean maker's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 810 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. by 133.5% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 3,286 shares of the blue-jean maker's stock valued at $51,000 after purchasing an additional 1,879 shares in the last quarter. LSV Asset Management acquired a new stake in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. in the 3rd quarter valued at $117,000. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC boosted its stake in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. by 17,721.6% in the 2nd quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 6,594 shares of the blue-jean maker's stock valued at $122,000 after purchasing an additional 6,557 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.14% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Levi Strauss & Co. news, EVP Jason Gowans sold 40,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.83, for a total transaction of $873,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 92,199 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,012,704.17. This represents a 30.26% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Harmit J. Singh sold 121,767 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.52, for a total value of $2,863,959.84. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 148,757 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,498,764.64. This trade represents a 45.01% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 281,108 shares of company stock valued at $6,462,869 in the last quarter. 1.08% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LEVI has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Telsey Advisory Group restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $27.00 target price on shares of Levi Strauss & Co. in a research note on Wednesday, April 1st. BTIG Research reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $27.00 price target on shares of Levi Strauss & Co. in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. Wall Street Zen raised Levi Strauss & Co. from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Saturday, April 11th. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on Levi Strauss & Co. in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $25.00 price target for the company. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut Levi Strauss & Co. from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Levi Strauss & Co. currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $26.77.

Levi Strauss & Co. Price Performance

Shares of LEVI opened at $22.34 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.58. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $20.54 and a 200 day simple moving average of $21.03. Levi Strauss & Co. has a 52-week low of $15.32 and a 52-week high of $24.82. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.59 billion, a PE ratio of 14.23, a P/E/G ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.34.

Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 7th. The blue-jean maker reported $0.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.37 by $0.05. Levi Strauss & Co. had a return on equity of 25.35% and a net margin of 9.52%.The business had revenue of $1.74 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.65 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.38 EPS. Levi Strauss & Co.'s quarterly revenue was up 14.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Levi Strauss & Co. will post 1.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Levi Strauss & Co. Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 6th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 22nd will be given a dividend of $0.14 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 22nd. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.5%. Levi Strauss & Co.'s dividend payout ratio is 35.67%.

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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