National Pension Service Lowers Stock Holdings in lululemon athletica inc. $LULU

Key Points

• National Pension Service sharply cut its lululemon stake by 84.7% in the fourth quarter, selling 131,778 shares and leaving it with 23,729 shares worth about $4.9 million.
• Institutional ownership remains high, with 85.20% of lululemon shares held by hedge funds and other institutional investors. While some funds trimmed positions, others such as Vanguard, Geode, and Invesco increased their holdings.
• Analysts are increasingly cautious: several firms cut price targets, and the consensus rating is now Hold with an average target price of $200.84. The stock also closed around $132.09, far below its 52-week high of $340.25.

National Pension Service reduced its stake in lululemon athletica inc. (NASDAQ:LULU - Free Report) by 84.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 23,729 shares of the apparel retailer's stock after selling 131,778 shares during the quarter. National Pension Service's holdings in lululemon athletica were worth $4,931,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of lululemon athletica by 3.9% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 13,782,917 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $2,452,394,000 after purchasing an additional 521,915 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of lululemon athletica by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,049,911 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $631,526,000 after buying an additional 71,464 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of lululemon athletica by 28.7% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,200,552 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $391,544,000 after buying an additional 490,127 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of lululemon athletica by 32.3% in the third quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,311,664 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $233,394,000 after buying an additional 319,934 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp boosted its stake in shares of lululemon athletica by 0.8% in the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,034,873 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $184,135,000 after buying an additional 8,154 shares in the last quarter. 85.20% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently weighed in on LULU shares. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on lululemon athletica from $210.00 to $176.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 18th. BTIG Research restated a "buy" rating and issued a $225.00 price target on shares of lululemon athletica in a research note on Friday. UBS Group decreased their price target on lululemon athletica from $176.00 to $153.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. Bank of America decreased their price target on lululemon athletica from $220.00 to $200.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 3rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut lululemon athletica from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 31st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating, twenty-eight have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $200.84.

lululemon athletica Stock Up 0.7%

NASDAQ LULU opened at $132.09 on Tuesday. lululemon athletica inc. has a fifty-two week low of $116.63 and a fifty-two week high of $340.25. The stock has a market cap of $15.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.04 and a beta of 0.88. The business has a fifty day moving average of $144.29 and a 200-day moving average of $171.29.

lululemon athletica (NASDAQ:LULU - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 17th. The apparel retailer reported $5.01 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.78 by $0.23. The company had revenue of $3.64 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.59 billion. lululemon athletica had a return on equity of 34.82% and a net margin of 14.22%.The business's revenue for the quarter was up .0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $6.14 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that lululemon athletica inc. will post 12.26 EPS for the current year.

Key lululemon athletica News

Here are the key news stories impacting lululemon athletica this week:

• Positive Sentiment: lululemon reached a settlement with founder and major shareholder Chip Wilson, ending a public feud and reducing governance overhang as the company prepares for a new CEO transition. This could let management focus more on the business instead of proxy conflict. Massive News for Lululemon Stock Investors
• Positive Sentiment: The cooperation agreement also adds board changes, including apparel expertise and support for declassifying the board, which investors may view as a step toward better governance and accountability. How lululemon’s Board Truce With Founder Chip Wilson Will Impact lululemon athletica (LULU) Investors
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts are focused on whether the upcoming quarter shows signs of a recovery, but the report itself is still a near-term event risk and a source of uncertainty. Lululemon Looks Ahead to Earnings Amid Recovery
• Neutral Sentiment: UBS cut its price target on lululemon to $153 from $176 and kept a neutral rating, signaling more limited upside and caution around the stock’s near-term outlook. Benzinga report on UBS price target cut
• Negative Sentiment: Jefferies said Q1 is unlikely to mark a turning point, citing weak traffic, conversion and brand engagement, with a turnaround possibly delayed until 2027. That suggests the core business is still under pressure despite international growth. Lululemon traffic trends, margins and turnaround timeline in focus for Q1 report

Insider Activity at lululemon athletica

In related news, insider Nicole Neuburger sold 622 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $161.00, for a total value of $100,142.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 19,156 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,084,116. This represents a 3.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Charles V. Bergh bought 6,090 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 20th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $164.20 per share, with a total value of $999,978.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 6,090 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $999,978. The trade was a ∞ increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Insiders own 0.54% of the company's stock.

About lululemon athletica

lululemon athletica inc. is a design-focused athletic apparel company known for performance-oriented apparel, footwear and accessories. The company's product portfolio centers on technical apparel for yoga, running, training and everyday active lifestyle use and includes tops, bottoms, outerwear, underwear, bags and a growing footwear assortment. lululemon emphasizes fabric science and product innovation, marketing garments that blend performance features with lifestyle styling.

Products are developed in-house and produced through a network of third-party manufacturers.

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