Woodline Partners LP Makes New $951,000 Investment in Lululemon Athletica Inc. (NASDAQ:LULU)

Woodline Partners LP bought a new position in Lululemon Athletica Inc. (NASDAQ:LULU - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 2,487 shares of the apparel retailer's stock, valued at approximately $951,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in LULU. Brighton Jones LLC bought a new position in Lululemon Athletica in the 4th quarter worth about $429,000. Fifth Third Bancorp increased its position in shares of Lululemon Athletica by 26.3% during the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 21,505 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $8,224,000 after purchasing an additional 4,479 shares during the last quarter. Narwhal Capital Management increased its position in shares of Lululemon Athletica by 47.5% during the 4th quarter. Narwhal Capital Management now owns 5,177 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $1,980,000 after purchasing an additional 1,668 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in shares of Lululemon Athletica by 10.3% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 759 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $290,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA bought a new position in Lululemon Athletica during the 4th quarter worth approximately $2,360,000. 85.20% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

LULU has been the topic of several recent research reports. Needham & Company LLC reduced their price target on Lululemon Athletica from $475.00 to $430.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 26th. Barclays dropped their price objective on Lululemon Athletica from $309.00 to $276.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 12th. BTIG Research dropped their price objective on Lululemon Athletica from $470.00 to $420.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, March 28th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Lululemon Athletica from $315.00 to $300.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, William Blair restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Lululemon Athletica in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, nineteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $369.52.

Lululemon Athletica Price Performance

Shares of LULU traded down $0.09 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $317.00. The stock had a trading volume of 2,171,284 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,167,134. The firm has a market capitalization of $38.24 billion, a PE ratio of 22.87, a PEG ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.30. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $285.33 and a 200 day moving average price of $337.93. Lululemon Athletica Inc. has a 12 month low of $226.01 and a 12 month high of $423.32.

Lululemon Athletica (NASDAQ:LULU - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, March 27th. The apparel retailer reported $6.14 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.85 by $0.29. Lululemon Athletica had a return on equity of 42.16% and a net margin of 17.05%. The company had revenue of $3.60 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.59 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $5.29 earnings per share. Lululemon Athletica's quarterly revenue was up 12.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that Lululemon Athletica Inc. will post 14.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lululemon Athletica Company Profile

Lululemon Athletica Inc, together with its subsidiaries, designs, distributes, and retails athletic apparel, footwear, and accessories under the lululemon brand for women and men. It offers pants, shorts, tops, and jackets for healthy lifestyle, such as yoga, running, training, and other activities. It also provides fitness-inspired accessories.