Cwm LLC Boosts Stock Position in Ralph Lauren Corporation $RL

Key Points

• Cwm LLC boosted its stake in Ralph Lauren by 36% in Q4 to 25,922 shares worth about $9.17 million, contributing to the fact that institutional investors now own roughly 67.91% of the company's stock.
• CEO Patrice Louvet sold 47,000 shares on Feb. 10 for about $16.65 million, cutting his ownership by 35.46% (company insiders are reported to own 38.34%).
• Ralph Lauren beat Q expectations with $6.22 EPS vs. $5.80 consensus and revenue of $2.41 billion (up 12.2% YoY), and recently paid a quarterly dividend of $0.9125 ($3.65 annualized, ~0.9% yield).

Cwm LLC raised its stake in Ralph Lauren Corporation (NYSE:RL - Free Report) by 36.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 25,922 shares of the textile maker's stock after purchasing an additional 6,856 shares during the period. Cwm LLC's holdings in Ralph Lauren were worth $9,166,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Ralph Lauren by 0.3% in the third quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc. now owns 11,762 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $3,688,000 after acquiring an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. Wedmont Private Capital boosted its holdings in Ralph Lauren by 3.1% in the third quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 1,114 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $362,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. boosted its holdings in Ralph Lauren by 0.4% in the third quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 9,311 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $2,920,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB boosted its holdings in Ralph Lauren by 23.4% in the fourth quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 179 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $63,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Polymer Capital Management US LLC boosted its holdings in Ralph Lauren by 1.1% in the third quarter. Polymer Capital Management US LLC now owns 3,230 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $1,013,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.91% of the company's stock.

Ralph Lauren Trading Down 0.0%

Ralph Lauren stock opened at $386.78 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.52, a current ratio of 2.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. Ralph Lauren Corporation has a 52 week low of $198.62 and a 52 week high of $389.15. The company has a market capitalization of $23.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 1.46. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $356.63 and a 200 day moving average price of $350.52.

Ralph Lauren (NYSE:RL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The textile maker reported $6.22 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $5.80 by $0.42. Ralph Lauren had a return on equity of 37.97% and a net margin of 11.73%.The firm had revenue of $2.41 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.30 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $4.82 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 12.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Ralph Lauren Corporation will post 12.01 EPS for the current year.

Ralph Lauren Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 10th. Investors of record on Friday, March 27th were issued a dividend of $0.9125 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 27th. This represents a $3.65 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. Ralph Lauren's payout ratio is 24.85%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

RL has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. UBS Group reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Ralph Lauren in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on Ralph Lauren from $425.00 to $410.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 6th. Evercore set a $420.00 price target on Ralph Lauren and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $435.00 price target on shares of Ralph Lauren in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on Ralph Lauren from $416.00 to $430.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, March 6th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $399.19.

Insider Activity at Ralph Lauren

In related news, CEO Patrice Louvet sold 47,000 shares of Ralph Lauren stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $354.22, for a total transaction of $16,648,340.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 85,552 shares of the company's stock, valued at $30,304,229.44. The trade was a 35.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 38.34% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Ralph Lauren

Ralph Lauren Corporation NYSE: RL is a global designer, marketer and distributor of premium lifestyle products under the Ralph Lauren name and a portfolio of related brands. The company, founded by Ralph Lauren in 1967 and headquartered in New York City, has grown from a single line of men's neckties into a global lifestyle business that spans apparel, accessories and home goods.

Ralph Lauren's product assortment includes menswear, womenswear and childrenswear along with footwear, leather goods, eyewear, fragrances and home furnishings.

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