Quantitative Investment Management LLC Takes $345,000 Position in Ralph Lauren Corporation $RL

Key Points

• Quantitative Investment Management LLC purchased 1,567 shares of Ralph Lauren Corporation, valued at approximately $345,000, as part of its new investment in the company during the first quarter.
• Ralph Lauren reported a 3.77 EPS for the last quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations and showing a year-over-year revenue increase of 13.7%.
• The company's board has authorized a $1.50 billion share buyback program, indicating confidence in the stock's underappreciated value.

Quantitative Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ralph Lauren Corporation (NYSE:RL - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 1,567 shares of the textile maker's stock, valued at approximately $345,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB boosted its holdings in Ralph Lauren by 93.7% during the first quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 122 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. Sentry Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ralph Lauren by 178.0% in the first quarter. Sentry Investment Management LLC now owns 139 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares in the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group lifted its holdings in shares of Ralph Lauren by 180.3% in the first quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 171 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares in the last quarter. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Ralph Lauren in the first quarter valued at about $39,000. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ralph Lauren by 74.4% in the first quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 272 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $60,000 after purchasing an additional 116 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.91% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have issued reports on RL. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Ralph Lauren from $318.00 to $328.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Cowen reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Ralph Lauren in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Ralph Lauren from $300.00 to $320.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Ralph Lauren from $355.00 to $406.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, July 28th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC raised their price target on shares of Ralph Lauren from $310.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 5th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $306.41.

Ralph Lauren Trading Down 0.2%

NYSE:RL traded down $0.56 on Friday, hitting $297.08. 578,753 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 856,976. The stock has a market capitalization of $17.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.73, a P/E/G ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 1.53. Ralph Lauren Corporation has a 52 week low of $168.24 and a 52 week high of $306.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a current ratio of 1.84. The company's 50-day moving average price is $288.21 and its 200 day moving average price is $259.85.

Ralph Lauren (NYSE:RL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 7th. The textile maker reported $3.77 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.50 by $0.27. The firm had revenue of $1.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.65 billion. Ralph Lauren had a return on equity of 33.72% and a net margin of 10.91%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 13.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.70 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Ralph Lauren Corporation will post 12.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Ralph Lauren announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Thursday, May 22nd that permits the company to buyback $1.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the textile maker to repurchase up to 8.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Ralph Lauren Company Profile

Ralph Lauren Corporation designs, markets, and distributes lifestyle products in North America, Europe, Asia, and internationally. The company offers apparel, including a range of men's, women's, and children's clothing; footwear and accessories, which comprise casual shoes, dress shoes, boots, sneakers, sandals, eyewear, watches, fashion and fine jewelry, scarves, hats, gloves, and umbrellas, as well as leather goods, such as handbags, luggage, small leather goods, and belts; home products consisting of bed and bath lines, furniture, fabric and wallcoverings, floor coverings, lighting, tabletop, kitchen linens, floor coverings, dining, decorative accessories, and giftware; and fragrances.