WBI Investments LLC Invests $1.25 Million in Ralph Lauren Co. (NYSE:RL)

WBI Investments LLC acquired a new position in Ralph Lauren Co. (NYSE:RL - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 5,389 shares of the textile maker's stock, valued at approximately $1,245,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Triglav Skladi D.O.O. bought a new position in Ralph Lauren in the 4th quarter worth approximately $10,872,000. Tidal Investments LLC lifted its position in Ralph Lauren by 293.4% in the fourth quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 77,846 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $17,981,000 after purchasing an additional 58,057 shares during the period. True Wealth Design LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ralph Lauren by 28.0% in the fourth 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. Sherbrooke Park Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in Ralph Lauren in the 4th quarter valued at about $723,000. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised its holdings in shares of Ralph Lauren by 51.1% in the 4th quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 62,081 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $14,340,000 after purchasing an additional 21,006 shares in the last quarter. 67.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

RL has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Cowen reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Ralph Lauren in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Guggenheim increased their price objective on Ralph Lauren from $285.00 to $310.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $315.00 price objective on shares of Ralph Lauren in a research report on Thursday. UBS Group increased their price objective on Ralph Lauren from $300.00 to $335.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Finally, BNP Paribas raised shares of Ralph Lauren to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $277.29.

Ralph Lauren Stock Performance

RL stock traded up $3.48 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $277.36. 1,557,140 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 840,834. The company has a quick ratio of 1.31, a current ratio of 1.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. Ralph Lauren Co. has a 52 week low of $155.96 and a 52 week high of $289.33. The business has a 50-day moving average of $226.09 and a two-hundred day moving average of $234.57. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.13 billion, a PE ratio of 25.31, a P/E/G ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 1.44.

Ralph Lauren (NYSE:RL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 22nd. The textile maker reported $2.27 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.00 by $0.27. Ralph Lauren had a net margin of 10.14% and a return on equity of 30.88%. The business had revenue of $1.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.64 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.71 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Ralph Lauren Co. will post 12.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ralph Lauren Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 11th. Investors of record on Friday, June 27th will be paid a $0.9125 dividend. This represents a $3.65 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.32%. This is a boost from Ralph Lauren's previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. Ralph Lauren's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.11%.

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.