Barclays Cuts Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI) Price Target to $18.00

Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI) had its price objective cut by Barclays from $22.00 to $18.00 in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. They currently have an overweight rating on the blue-jean maker’s stock.

A number of other equities research analysts have also weighed in on LEVI. UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of Levi Strauss & Co. from $26.00 to $25.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Levi Strauss & Co. from $18.00 to $17.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Telsey Advisory Group decreased their price target on Levi Strauss & Co. from $23.00 to $19.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. Citigroup lowered their price target on Levi Strauss & Co. from $19.00 to $14.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Levi Strauss & Co. from $20.00 to $17.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $19.18.

Levi Strauss & Co. Trading Down 2.9 %

Shares of Levi Strauss & Co. stock opened at $14.50 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.74 billion, a PE ratio of 27.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.07. Levi Strauss & Co. has a 52 week low of $12.17 and a 52 week high of $24.34. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $16.64 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $17.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 1.42.

Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 7th. The blue-jean maker reported $0.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.28 by $0.10. Levi Strauss & Co. had a net margin of 3.32% and a return on equity of 25.88%. The business had revenue of $1.53 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.54 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.26 EPS. Levi Strauss & Co.’s revenue was up 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Levi Strauss & Co. will post 1.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Levi Strauss & Co. Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 24th will be paid a $0.13 dividend. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.59%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 24th. Levi Strauss & Co.’s payout ratio is 58.43%.

Insider Activity

In other Levi Strauss & Co. news, Director David A. Friedman sold 4,166 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.44, for a total value of $76,821.04. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 100,012 shares in the company, valued at $1,844,221.28. The trade was a 4.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.25% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Levi Strauss & Co.

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. bought a new position in Levi Strauss & Co. during the fourth quarter worth about $39,000. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $57,000. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Levi Strauss & Co. in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $82,000. Matrix Trust Co grew its stake in Levi Strauss & Co. by 678.9% in the 4th quarter. Matrix Trust Co now owns 5,507 shares of the blue-jean maker’s stock valued at $95,000 after buying an additional 4,800 shares in the last quarter. Finally, R Squared Ltd bought a new position in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. in the fourth quarter worth $105,000. 69.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Levi Strauss & Co.

Levi Strauss & Co engages in the design, marketing, and sale of apparel products. The company offers jeans, casual and dress pants, tops, shorts, skirts, jackets, footwear, and related accessories. It operates through the following geographical segments: Americas, Europe, and Asia. The company was founded by Levi Strauss in 1853 and is headquartered in San Francisco, CA.