BMO Capital Markets Issues Positive Forecast for Ralph Lauren (NYSE:RL) Stock Price

Ralph Lauren (NYSE:RL) had its price target raised by BMO Capital Markets from $197.00 to $205.00 in a research report sent to investors on Friday morning, MarketBeat reports. BMO Capital Markets currently has an underperform rating on the textile maker’s stock.

RL has been the topic of several other research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Ralph Lauren from $285.00 to $342.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. TD Cowen upped their price target on shares of Ralph Lauren from $258.00 to $268.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Citigroup cut their price target on shares of Ralph Lauren from $282.00 to $219.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 7th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Ralph Lauren from $240.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Ralph Lauren from $260.00 to $321.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Ralph Lauren presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $292.88.

Ralph Lauren Stock Down 1.3%

Shares of RL opened at $273.92 on Friday. Ralph Lauren has a one year low of $155.96 and a one year high of $289.33. The company has a market cap of $16.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.99, a P/E/G ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 1.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 1.76 and a quick ratio of 1.31. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $228.32 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $235.59.

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

Ralph Lauren declared that its board has authorized a share buyback plan on Thursday, May 22nd that authorizes the company to buyback $1.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the textile maker to repurchase up to 8.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Ralph Lauren Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 11th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 27th will be paid a $0.9125 dividend. This is a positive change from Ralph Lauren’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 27th. This represents a $3.65 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.33%. Ralph Lauren’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 30.11%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB grew its position in shares of Ralph Lauren by 93.7% during the 1st quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 122 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 59 shares during the period. Sentry Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Ralph Lauren by 178.0% in the 1st quarter. Sentry Investment Management LLC now owns 139 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 89 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Ralph Lauren by 1,270.0% in the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 137 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 127 shares during the period. Banque Transatlantique SA bought a new position in Ralph Lauren in the 1st quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Brooklyn Investment Group boosted its holdings in Ralph Lauren by 180.3% in the 1st quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 171 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 110 shares during the period. 67.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.