JPMorgan Chase & Co. Sells 189,327 Shares of Ralph Lauren Corporation (NYSE:RL)

Key Points

• JPMorgan Chase & Co. has reduced its stake in Ralph Lauren Corporation by 17.5%, now holding approximately 1.44% of the company's shares valued at around $196.5 million.
• Ralph Lauren recently announced a quarterly dividend increase to $0.9125 per share and initiated a share repurchase plan authorizing buybacks of up to $1.5 billion.
• Research analysts show strong support for Ralph Lauren with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a target price of $306.41, reflecting estimated positive growth in earnings.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased its stake in Ralph Lauren Corporation (NYSE:RL - Free Report) by 17.5% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 890,251 shares of the textile maker's stock after selling 189,327 shares during the quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. owned approximately 1.44% of Ralph Lauren worth $196,514,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Wells Fargo & Company MN lifted its holdings in shares of Ralph Lauren by 4.7% in the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 43,370 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $10,018,000 after purchasing an additional 1,939 shares during the last quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. increased its position in shares of Ralph Lauren by 962.5% during the fourth quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 680 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $157,000 after acquiring an additional 616 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Ralph Lauren in the fourth quarter worth about $16,848,000. Sterling Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Ralph Lauren by 59.4% in the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 2,383 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $550,000 after acquiring an additional 888 shares during the period. Finally, Townsquare Capital LLC raised its holdings in shares of Ralph Lauren by 16.0% during the fourth quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 1,982 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $458,000 after buying an additional 274 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.91% of the company's stock.

Ralph Lauren Trading Up 0.2%

Ralph Lauren stock traded up $0.49 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $290.88. 764,210 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 744,820. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.23, a PEG ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 1.53. Ralph Lauren Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $161.43 and a fifty-two week high of $306.34. The company has a quick ratio of 1.30, a current ratio of 1.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $284.17 and its 200-day simple moving average is $257.87.

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

Ralph Lauren declared that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Thursday, May 22nd that allows the company to buyback $1.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the textile maker to reacquire up to 8.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically a sign that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Ralph Lauren Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 11th. Investors of record on Friday, June 27th were issued a dividend of $0.9125 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 27th. This is an increase from Ralph Lauren's previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. This represents a $3.65 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.3%. Ralph Lauren's dividend payout ratio is 29.15%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have issued reports on the company. Bank of America upped their price target on Ralph Lauren from $318.00 to $328.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Ralph Lauren from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of Ralph Lauren from $320.00 to $335.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Ralph Lauren from $250.00 to $295.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of Ralph Lauren from $197.00 to $205.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $306.41.

About Ralph Lauren

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.