Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI) Receives $23.45 Average PT from Brokerages

Key Points

• Levi Strauss & Co. has received an average analyst recommendation of "Moderate Buy", with two analysts rating it as a hold and nine as a buy.
• The company reported $1.45 billion in revenue for the last quarter, surpassing analysts' expectations of $1.37 billion, and its earnings per share (EPS) also exceeded estimates.
• Levi Strauss & Co. recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.14 per share, increasing from the previous dividend of $0.13, representing an annualized yield of 2.9%.

Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI - Get Free Report) has been assigned a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the eleven brokerages that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12 month target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $23.4545.

LEVI has been the topic of several research reports. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Levi Strauss & Co. from $21.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, July 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Levi Strauss & Co. from $18.00 to $23.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Levi Strauss & Co. from $19.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Levi Strauss & Co. from $16.00 to $19.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Finally, Barclays reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $24.00 price target (up from $20.00) on shares of Levi Strauss & Co. in a research report on Monday, July 14th.

Institutional Trading of Levi Strauss & Co.

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Golden State Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. by 101.5% during the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,210 shares of the blue-jean maker's stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 1,113 shares during the period. IFP Advisors Inc bought a new stake in Levi Strauss & Co. during the 1st quarter valued at about $38,000. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in Levi Strauss & Co. by 35.4% during the 1st quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 3,109 shares of the blue-jean maker's stock valued at $49,000 after buying an additional 812 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its holdings in Levi Strauss & Co. by 133.5% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 3,286 shares of the blue-jean maker's stock valued at $51,000 after buying an additional 1,879 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Point72 Hong Kong Ltd bought a new stake in Levi Strauss & Co. during the 4th quarter valued at about $57,000. 69.14% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Levi Strauss & Co. Stock Up 1.9%

NYSE:LEVI traded up $0.37 on Friday, reaching $19.61. 780,955 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,540,478. The company has a market capitalization of $7.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.26, a PEG ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a current ratio of 1.48, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49. Levi Strauss & Co. has a 12 month low of $12.17 and a 12 month high of $22.35. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $18.89 and its 200 day simple moving average is $17.47.

Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 10th. The blue-jean maker reported $0.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.13 by $0.09. Levi Strauss & Co. had a net margin of 6.40% and a return on equity of 28.75%. The company had revenue of $1.45 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.37 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.16 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Levi Strauss & Co. will post 1.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Levi Strauss & Co. Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 8th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 24th will be given a dividend of $0.14 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 24th. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.9%. This is a positive change from Levi Strauss & Co.'s previous quarterly dividend of $0.13. Levi Strauss & Co.'s dividend payout ratio is currently 54.90%.

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.