Kontoor Brands, Inc. (NYSE:KTB) Shares Sold by Jefferies Financial Group Inc.

Key Points

• Jefferies Financial Group significantly reduced its holdings in Kontoor Brands, cutting its position by 79.3%, while several other hedge funds increased their investments.
• Kontoor Brands reported earnings of $1.20 per share, exceeding analysts' expectations, but experienced a 1.3% decline in revenue year-over-year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.52 per share, reflecting a 3.6% annual yield, with a payout ratio of approximately 50.98%.

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. trimmed its holdings in Kontoor Brands, Inc. (NYSE:KTB - Free Report) by 79.3% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 17,549 shares of the company's stock after selling 67,130 shares during the quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc.'s holdings in Kontoor Brands were worth $1,125,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Quadrant Capital Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Kontoor Brands by 14.1% during the 4th quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 1,177 shares of the company's stock worth $101,000 after buying an additional 145 shares in the last quarter. Huntington National Bank raised its position in Kontoor Brands by 62.4% in the fourth quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 385 shares of the company's stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 148 shares in the last quarter. Beacon Pointe Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Kontoor Brands by 3.4% during the 4th quarter. Beacon Pointe Advisors LLC now owns 6,206 shares of the company's stock worth $530,000 after purchasing an additional 202 shares in the last quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC boosted its position in shares of Kontoor Brands by 12.7% during the 1st quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 1,797 shares of the company's stock worth $115,000 after purchasing an additional 203 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Xponance Inc. grew its stake in shares of Kontoor Brands by 5.1% during the 1st quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 4,230 shares of the company's stock worth $271,000 after purchasing an additional 205 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.06% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently commented on KTB shares. Barclays reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $91.00 price objective (up previously from $86.00) on shares of Kontoor Brands in a report on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Kontoor Brands from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on Kontoor Brands from $72.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Friday. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $85.00 price objective on Kontoor Brands and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 10th. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on Kontoor Brands from $92.00 to $99.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $89.67.

Kontoor Brands Price Performance

KTB stock traded up $2.80 on Friday, reaching $66.79. The company had a trading volume of 658,085 shares, compared to its average volume of 731,529. The company's fifty day moving average is $65.10 and its 200 day moving average is $68.28. The company has a market cap of $3.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.36, a PEG ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.72, a quick ratio of 1.65 and a current ratio of 2.78. Kontoor Brands, Inc. has a 1 year low of $50.00 and a 1 year high of $96.80.

Kontoor Brands (NYSE:KTB - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported $1.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.86 by $0.35. Kontoor Brands had a return on equity of 71.33% and a net margin of 8.82%. The business had revenue of $658.26 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $632.97 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.98 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Kontoor Brands, Inc. will post 4.82 earnings per share for the current year.

Kontoor Brands Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 19th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 9th will be paid a dividend of $0.52 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 9th. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.1%. Kontoor Brands's dividend payout ratio is presently 50.98%.

Kontoor Brands Company Profile

Kontoor Brands, Inc, a lifestyle apparel company, designs, produces, procures, markets, distributes, and licenses denim, apparel, footwear, and accessories, primarily under the Wrangler and Lee brands. The company operates through two segments: Wrangler and Lee. It licenses and sells apparel under the Rock & Republic brand name.