Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI) Upgraded by Wells Fargo & Company to "Overweight" Rating

Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI - Get Free Report) was upgraded by investment analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating in a note issued to investors on Wednesday, MarketBeat.com reports. The brokerage currently has a $20.00 target price on the blue-jean maker's stock, up from their prior target price of $17.00. Wells Fargo & Company's price objective suggests a potential upside of 22.17% from the company's current price.

Other analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Levi Strauss & Co. from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $19.00 to $17.00 in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Citigroup cut their target price on Levi Strauss & Co. from $19.00 to $14.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 7th. Barclays decreased their price target on Levi Strauss & Co. from $22.00 to $18.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on Levi Strauss & Co. from $25.00 to $20.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Bank of America raised Levi Strauss & Co. from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their target price for the company from $17.00 to $20.00 in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $19.45.

Levi Strauss & Co. Stock Up 1.0 %

Levi Strauss & Co. stock traded up $0.16 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $16.37. 554,574 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,146,174. The company has a market cap of $6.48 billion, a PE ratio of 31.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.14. Levi Strauss & Co. has a fifty-two week low of $12.17 and a fifty-two week high of $24.34. The company's fifty day moving average price is $15.66 and its 200-day moving average price is $16.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 1.42 and a quick ratio of 0.80.

Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 7th. The blue-jean maker reported $0.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.28 by $0.10. Levi Strauss & Co. had a net margin of 3.32% and a return on equity of 25.88%. The business had revenue of $1.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.54 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.26 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that Levi Strauss & Co. will post 1.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Levi Strauss & Co.

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Tidal Investments LLC lifted its position in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. by 11.2% during the 3rd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 166,736 shares of the blue-jean maker's stock valued at $3,635,000 after acquiring an additional 16,785 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in Levi Strauss & Co. by 1.7% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,230,069 shares of the blue-jean maker's stock valued at $26,816,000 after purchasing an additional 20,426 shares in the last quarter. Matrix Trust Co increased its stake in Levi Strauss & Co. by 678.9% during the 4th quarter. Matrix Trust Co now owns 5,507 shares of the blue-jean maker's stock valued at $95,000 after purchasing an additional 4,800 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its holdings in Levi Strauss & Co. by 32.9% during the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 12,103 shares of the blue-jean maker's stock worth $209,000 after buying an additional 2,998 shares during the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV lifted its stake in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 114,442 shares of the blue-jean maker's stock valued at $1,980,000 after buying an additional 892 shares in the last quarter. 69.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Levi Strauss & Co. Company Profile

Levi Strauss & Co engages in the design, marketing, and sale of apparel products. The company offers jeans, casual and dress pants, tops, shorts, skirts, jackets, footwear, and related accessories. It operates through the following geographical segments: Americas, Europe, and Asia. The company was founded by Levi Strauss in 1853 and is headquartered in San Francisco, CA.