Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. Buys Shares of 1,421 Ralph Lauren Co. (NYSE:RL)

Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Ralph Lauren Co. (NYSE:RL) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 1,421 shares of the textile maker’s stock, valued at approximately $205,000.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Raymond James & Associates lifted its stake in shares of Ralph Lauren by 71.9% during the 4th quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 80,043 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $11,542,000 after buying an additional 33,489 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia lifted its stake in Ralph Lauren by 9.9% in the 3rd quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 2,761 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $321,000 after purchasing an additional 249 shares in the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG lifted its stake in Ralph Lauren by 64.4% in the 3rd quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 123,638 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $14,353,000 after purchasing an additional 48,432 shares in the last quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP purchased a new stake in Ralph Lauren in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $827,000. Finally, Qsemble Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in Ralph Lauren in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $743,000. 67.91% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have issued reports on RL. Raymond James increased their target price on shares of Ralph Lauren from $135.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 30th. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Ralph Lauren from $188.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 5th. StockNews.com raised shares of Ralph Lauren from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on shares of Ralph Lauren from $132.00 to $151.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, February 9th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $195.00 price target (up previously from $165.00) on shares of Ralph Lauren in a report on Thursday, February 8th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $155.64.

Ralph Lauren Price Performance

RL stock opened at $168.21 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 1.54 and a current ratio of 2.17. Ralph Lauren Co. has a 52 week low of $103.17 and a 52 week high of $192.03. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $177.71 and its 200 day moving average is $148.47. The firm has a market cap of $10.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.07, a P/E/G ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 1.53.

Ralph Lauren (NYSE:RL) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 8th. The textile maker reported $4.17 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.53 by $0.64. Ralph Lauren had a net margin of 8.90% and a return on equity of 25.88%. The company had revenue of $1.93 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.87 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.35 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Ralph Lauren Co. will post 10.23 earnings per share for the current year.

Ralph Lauren Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 28th were issued a $0.75 dividend. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.78%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 27th. Ralph Lauren’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 34.01%.

Ralph Lauren 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, lighting, tabletop, kitchen linens, floor coverings, and giftware; and fragrances.