Gildan Activewear, Inc. (NYSE:GIL) Given Average Recommendation of "Buy" by Analysts

Gildan Activewear, Inc. (NYSE:GIL - Get Free Report) TSE: GIL has been given an average rating of "Buy" by the eleven brokerages that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a buy recommendation and two have given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year target price among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $57.91.

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on GIL shares. TD Securities upped their price objective on Gildan Activewear from $56.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Scotiabank raised Gildan Activewear to a "strong-buy" rating and set a $55.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 28th. CIBC lowered their price objective on Gildan Activewear from $60.00 to $56.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, Barclays initiated coverage on shares of Gildan Activewear in a report on Monday, April 28th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $51.00 target price on the stock.

Gildan Activewear Stock Performance

Shares of GIL stock traded up $0.69 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $50.84. The company's stock had a trading volume of 454,003 shares, compared to its average volume of 628,913. The stock has a market cap of $7.65 billion, a PE ratio of 19.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 1.19. Gildan Activewear has a 12-month low of $37.16 and a 12-month high of $55.39. The company has a 50 day moving average of $47.61 and a 200 day moving average of $47.62. The company has a current ratio of 3.91, a quick ratio of 1.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35.

Gildan Activewear (NYSE:GIL - Get Free Report) TSE: GIL last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The textile maker reported $0.59 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.57 by $0.02. Gildan Activewear had a net margin of 12.38% and a return on equity of 30.61%. The company had revenue of $711.70 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $715.29 million. The firm's revenue was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.59 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Gildan Activewear will post 3.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Gildan Activewear Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 16th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 20th were given a $0.226 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 20th. This represents a $0.90 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.78%. Gildan Activewear's payout ratio is currently 34.75%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Gildan Activewear

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Plato Investment Management Ltd raised its stake in Gildan Activewear by 684.2% during the first quarter. Plato Investment Management Ltd now owns 4,619 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $206,000 after buying an additional 4,030 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its holdings in shares of Gildan Activewear by 2.6% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 186,585 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $8,251,000 after acquiring an additional 4,714 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Gildan Activewear by 40.0% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,760,253 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $77,838,000 after acquiring an additional 503,359 shares in the last quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd lifted its stake in Gildan Activewear by 138.9% during the first quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd now owns 23,135 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $1,023,000 after purchasing an additional 13,451 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Gildan Activewear by 49.3% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 13,209 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $584,000 after purchasing an additional 4,360 shares during the last quarter. 82.83% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Gildan Activewear Company Profile

Gildan Activewear Inc manufactures and sells various apparel products in the United States, North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Latin America. It provides various activewear products, including T-shirts, fleece tops and bottoms, and sports shirts under the Gildan, Gildan Performance, Gildan Hammer, Glidan Softstyle, Gildan Heavy Cotton, Gildan Ultra Cotton, Gildan DryBlend, Gildan HeavyBlend, Comfort Colors, and American Apparel brands.