Hussman Strategic Advisors Inc. Buys 32,000 Shares of Carter's, Inc. (NYSE:CRI)

Hussman Strategic Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of Carter's, Inc. (NYSE:CRI - Free Report) by 103.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 63,000 shares of the textile maker's stock after buying an additional 32,000 shares during the quarter. Carter's makes up approximately 1.1% of Hussman Strategic Advisors Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 12th largest holding. Hussman Strategic Advisors Inc. owned about 0.17% of Carter's worth $4,718,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Federated Hermes Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Carter's by 33.6% in the 4th quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 8,578 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $642,000 after purchasing an additional 2,155 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its stake in shares of Carter's by 18.4% in the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 7,942 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $595,000 after purchasing an additional 1,232 shares during the period. Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Carter's in the 4th quarter valued at $552,000. Lecap Asset Management Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Carter's in the 4th quarter valued at $300,000. Finally, Louisiana State Employees Retirement System acquired a new position in shares of Carter's in the 4th quarter valued at $771,000.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. StockNews.com downgraded Carter's from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Citigroup dropped their price objective on Carter's from $66.00 to $64.00 and set a "sell" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. Wedbush raised their price objective on Carter's from $67.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, February 23rd. UBS Group raised their price objective on Carter's from $76.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 28th. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt downgraded Carter's from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, February 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and five have given a hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $75.25.

Carter's Stock Up 0.5 %

CRI stock traded up $0.34 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $71.75. 611,922 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 744,155. The firm's 50-day moving average is $80.66 and its 200-day moving average is $74.68. The company has a market cap of $2.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.44, a PEG ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 2.15 and a quick ratio of 1.10. Carter's, Inc. has a 12 month low of $60.65 and a 12 month high of $88.03.

Carter's (NYSE:CRI - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 27th. The textile maker reported $2.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.52 by $0.24. The firm had revenue of $858.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $867.81 million. Carter's had a return on equity of 28.79% and a net margin of 7.89%. The company's revenue was down 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.29 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Carter's, Inc. will post 6.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Carter's Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 11th were issued a dividend of $0.80 per share. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.46%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 8th. This is a boost from Carter's's previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. Carter's's dividend payout ratio is 51.04%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Carter's news, Director Mark Hipp sold 1,875 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $81.74, for a total transaction of $153,262.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 10,216 shares in the company, valued at approximately $835,055.84. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 3.30% of the company's stock.

Carter's Company Profile

Carter's, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, designs, sources, and markets branded childrenswear under the Carter's, OshKosh, Skip Hop, Child of Mine, Just One You, Simple Joys, Little Planet, and other brands in the United States and internationally. It operates through three segments: U.S.