Ralph Lauren (NYSE:RL) Downgraded to "Moderate Sell" Rating by Cfra Research

Cfra Research cut shares of Ralph Lauren (NYSE:RL - Free Report) from a hold rating to a moderate sell rating in a research note published on Tuesday, May 20th,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other brokerages have also recently issued reports on RL. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Ralph Lauren from $285.00 to $342.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. BNP Paribas upgraded Ralph Lauren to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. TD Cowen lifted their price target on shares of Ralph Lauren from $258.00 to $268.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Raymond James lowered shares of Ralph Lauren from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Ralph Lauren from $282.00 to $219.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $292.88.

Ralph Lauren Stock Up 3.9%

NYSE RL traded up $10.81 on Tuesday, reaching $284.89. The stock had a trading volume of 237,349 shares, compared to its average volume of 831,629. Ralph Lauren has a 1 year low of $155.96 and a 1 year high of $289.33. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $229.32 and a 200 day moving average price of $236.24. The company has a market capitalization of $17.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.95, a P/E/G ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 1.44. The company has a current ratio of 1.76, a quick ratio of 1.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39.

Ralph Lauren (NYSE:RL - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 22nd. The textile maker reported $2.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.00 by $0.27. The business had revenue of $1.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.64 billion. Ralph Lauren had a return on equity of 30.88% and a net margin of 10.14%. Ralph Lauren's quarterly revenue was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.71 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Ralph Lauren will post 12.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ralph Lauren announced that its board has approved a share buyback program on Thursday, May 22nd that allows the company to buyback $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the textile maker to reacquire up to 8.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually an indication that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Ralph Lauren Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 11th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 27th will be paid a $0.9125 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 27th. This is a positive change from Ralph Lauren's previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. This represents a $3.65 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.28%. Ralph Lauren's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 31.44%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC boosted its stake in Ralph Lauren by 4.2% in the 1st quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC now owns 1,045 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $231,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the period. Baader Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted its position in shares of Ralph Lauren by 3.4% during the 1st quarter. Baader Bank Aktiengesellschaft now owns 1,367 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $300,000 after buying an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. increased its holdings in Ralph Lauren by 4.1% in the 4th quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 1,182 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $273,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB increased its holdings 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 worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Asset Management One Co. Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Ralph Lauren by 6.6% in the fourth quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 1,005 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $231,000 after buying an additional 62 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.91% of the company's stock.

Ralph Lauren Company Profile

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.