Stifel Nicolaus Reiterates Buy Rating for V.F. (NYSE:VFC)

Stifel Nicolaus reaffirmed their buy rating on shares of V.F. (NYSE:VFC - Free Report) in a report released on Tuesday morning, Benzinga reports. Stifel Nicolaus currently has a $22.00 target price on the textile maker's stock.

Several other equities research analysts have also weighed in on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered V.F. from a buy rating to a neutral rating and dropped their price target for the company from $19.00 to $14.00 in a research report on Wednesday, February 7th. Wedbush lowered their price objective on V.F. from $16.50 to $15.50 and set a neutral rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 7th. UBS Group lowered their price objective on V.F. from $19.00 to $18.00 and set a neutral rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on V.F. from $16.00 to $12.00 and set a neutral rating for the company in a research note on Monday. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded V.F. from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, V.F. presently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $18.23.

V.F. Stock Up 3.2 %

Shares of NYSE VFC traded up $0.43 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $13.95. 7,767,053 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 9,386,486. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.25, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a current ratio of 1.23. V.F. has a 52 week low of $12.85 and a 52 week high of $23.58. The company has a market cap of $5.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -7.08, a PEG ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.48. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $15.52 and a 200-day moving average price of $16.54.

V.F. (NYSE:VFC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 6th. The textile maker reported $0.57 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.79 by ($0.22). V.F. had a negative net margin of 7.07% and a positive return on equity of 19.03%. The firm had revenue of $2.96 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.24 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.12 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 16.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that V.F. will post 1.11 EPS for the current year.

V.F. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 11th were paid a $0.09 dividend. This represents a $0.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.58%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 8th. V.F.'s dividend payout ratio is currently -18.27%.

Insider Activity at V.F.

In other news, insider Bracken Darrell acquired 65,360 shares of V.F. stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 9th. The stock was bought at an average price of $15.38 per share, for a total transaction of $1,005,236.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 144,281 shares in the company, valued at $2,219,041.78. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, insider Bracken Darrell acquired 65,360 shares of V.F. stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 9th. The stock was bought at an average price of $15.38 per share, for a total transaction of $1,005,236.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 144,281 shares in the company, valued at $2,219,041.78. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Juliana L. Chugg acquired 11,301 shares of V.F. stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $17.55 per share, with a total value of $198,332.55. Following the transaction, the director now owns 26,301 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $461,582.55. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of V.F.

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd grew its holdings in V.F. by 106.9% during the first quarter. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd now owns 1,131 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $64,000 after purchasing an additional 17,451 shares during the period. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC grew its holdings in V.F. by 2,835.6% during the fourth quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC now owns 1,321 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 1,276 shares during the period. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC bought a new stake in V.F. during the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. West Tower Group LLC bought a new stake in V.F. during the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in V.F. during the third quarter valued at about $27,000. Institutional investors own 86.84% of the company's stock.

About V.F.

V.F. Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the design, procurement, marketing, and distribution of branded lifestyle apparel, footwear, and related products for men, women, and children in the Americas, Europe, and the Asia-Pacific. It operates through three segments: Outdoor, Active, and Work.