JPMorgan Chase & Co. Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Ralph Lauren (NYSE:RL) Stock

Key Points

• JPMorgan Chase & Co. has raised the target price for Ralph Lauren stock from $355.00 to $406.00, indicating a potential upside of 36.04% from its previous close.
• Ralph Lauren reported $2.27 earnings per share for the last quarter, exceeding estimates and showing an 8.3% increase in revenue compared to the same period last year.
• The company has announced a share buyback plan allowing for the repurchase of $1.50 billion worth of shares, a move typically signaling that the stock is viewed as undervalued by management.

Ralph Lauren (NYSE:RL - Get Free Report) had its target price boosted by investment analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $355.00 to $406.00 in a report released on Monday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an "overweight" rating on the textile maker's stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s price target would suggest a potential upside of 36.04% from the stock's previous close.

RL has been the subject of a number of other research reports. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on Ralph Lauren from $197.00 to $205.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Bank of America upped their price objective on Ralph Lauren from $318.00 to $328.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Ralph Lauren from $300.00 to $320.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Cfra Research cut Ralph Lauren from a "hold" rating to a "moderate sell" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. Finally, UBS Group set a $384.00 price target on Ralph Lauren and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $298.13.

Ralph Lauren Price Performance

RL stock opened at $298.43 on Monday. Ralph Lauren has a 12-month low of $155.96 and a 12-month high of $299.02. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $278.53 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $252.61. The company has a current ratio of 1.78, a quick ratio of 1.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. The company has a market cap of $18.00 billion, a PE ratio of 25.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 1.49.

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

Ralph Lauren announced that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Thursday, May 22nd that allows the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the textile maker to buy up to 8.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Institutional Trading of Ralph Lauren

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of RL. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ralph Lauren by 55.7% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,157,867 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $245,468,000 after purchasing an additional 414,275 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Ralph Lauren by 30.6% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,237,512 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $285,841,000 after purchasing an additional 289,924 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ralph Lauren by 24,164.5% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 254,292 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $56,132,000 after purchasing an additional 253,244 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its holdings in shares of Ralph Lauren by 16.9% during the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,415,473 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $326,946,000 after acquiring an additional 205,121 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wedge Capital Management L L P NC acquired a new stake in Ralph Lauren during the first quarter valued at $37,517,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.91% of the company's stock.

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.

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