Ralph Lauren (NYSE:RL) Reaches New 1-Year High After Analyst Upgrade

Key Points

• Ralph Lauren's shares reached a new 52-week high after Wells Fargo upgraded its price target from $320 to $345, indicating strong investor confidence.
• The company recently reported $3.77 EPS for its latest quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations, with a revenue of $1.72 billion, marking a 13.7% year-over-year increase.
• Ralph Lauren has authorized a $1.50 billion stock buyback plan, signaling management's belief that the stock is undervalued.

Shares of Ralph Lauren Corporation (NYSE:RL - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday after Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on the stock from $320.00 to $345.00. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an overweight rating on the stock. Ralph Lauren traded as high as $321.77 and last traded at $311.82, with a volume of 628687 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $320.75.

A number of other research analysts have also recently issued reports on RL. Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of Ralph Lauren from $318.00 to $328.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Ralph Lauren from $250.00 to $295.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, May 23rd. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on shares of Ralph Lauren from $262.00 to $324.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. Needham & Company LLC increased their price objective on shares of Ralph Lauren from $310.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Ralph Lauren from $355.00 to $406.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, July 28th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $307.88.

Institutional Trading of Ralph Lauren

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Hantz Financial Services Inc. grew its position in shares of Ralph Lauren by 1,228.6% during the 2nd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 93 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 86 shares during the period. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB grew its position in Ralph Lauren by 93.7% in the 1st quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 122 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares during the period. CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC acquired a new stake in Ralph Lauren in the 2nd quarter valued at $28,000. Sentry Investment Management LLC grew its position in Ralph Lauren by 178.0% in the 1st quarter. Sentry Investment Management LLC now owns 139 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares during the period. Finally, MUFG Securities EMEA plc acquired a new stake in Ralph Lauren in the 2nd quarter valued at $32,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.91% of the company's stock.

Ralph Lauren Trading Down 2.8%

The company has a current ratio of 1.84, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. The firm has a market cap of $18.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.33, a P/E/G ratio of 1.58 and a beta of 1.60. The firm's 50-day moving average is $292.55 and its 200-day moving average is $260.70.

Ralph Lauren (NYSE:RL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 7th. The textile maker reported $3.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.50 by $0.27. The firm had revenue of $1.72 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.65 billion. Ralph Lauren had a net margin of 10.91% and a return on equity of 33.72%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 13.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.70 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Ralph Lauren Corporation will post 12.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ralph Lauren announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback plan on Thursday, May 22nd that authorizes the company to buyback $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the textile maker to purchase up to 8.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

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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