Ralph Lauren Corporation (NYSE:RL) Shares Sold by Lecap Asset Management Ltd.

Lecap Asset Management Ltd. lessened its position in Ralph Lauren Corporation (NYSE:RL - Free Report) by 49.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,132 shares of the textile maker's stock after selling 3,120 shares during the period. Lecap Asset Management Ltd.'s holdings in Ralph Lauren were worth $691,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB increased its stake in Ralph Lauren by 93.7% during the 1st quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 122 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 59 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in Ralph Lauren by 17.6% during the 1st quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 415 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $92,000 after buying an additional 62 shares during the period. TD Private Client Wealth LLC increased its stake in Ralph Lauren by 19.6% during the 4th quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 446 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $103,000 after buying an additional 73 shares during the period. True Wealth Design LLC increased its stake in Ralph Lauren by 28.0% during the 4th quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 347 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $80,000 after buying an additional 76 shares during the period. Finally, Twin Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in Ralph Lauren by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Twin Capital Management Inc. now owns 5,659 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $1,307,000 after buying an additional 85 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.91% of the company's stock.

Ralph Lauren Stock Performance

Shares of RL opened at $273.87 on Friday. Ralph Lauren Corporation has a one year low of $155.96 and a one year high of $289.33. The company has a 50-day moving average of $257.84 and a two-hundred day moving average of $244.51. The stock has a market cap of $16.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.59, a PEG ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 1.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 1.78 and a quick ratio of 1.33.

Ralph Lauren (NYSE:RL - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 22nd. The textile maker reported $2.27 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.00 by $0.27. Ralph Lauren had a net margin of 10.49% and a return on equity of 31.76%. The company had revenue of $1.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.64 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.71 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Ralph Lauren Corporation will post 12.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Ralph Lauren Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 11th. Investors of record on Friday, June 27th will be issued a dividend of $0.9125 per share. This is a boost from Ralph Lauren's previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. This represents a $3.65 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.33%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 27th. Ralph Lauren's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 28.42%.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on RL shares. BMO Capital Markets raised 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. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on shares of Ralph Lauren from $250.00 to $328.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 23rd. Cfra Research lowered shares of Ralph Lauren from a "hold" rating to a "moderate sell" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on shares of Ralph Lauren from $262.00 to $324.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 23rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Ralph Lauren from $275.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, May 23rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $292.88.

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.

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