Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Invests $5.06 Million in Levi Strauss & Co. $LEVI

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans bought a new position in Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI) during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund bought 243,971 shares of the blue-jean maker’s stock, valued at approximately $5,060,000.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in LEVI. US Bancorp DE increased its holdings in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. by 260.5% in the third quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 1,121 shares of the blue-jean maker’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 810 shares during the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its stake in Levi Strauss & Co. by 140.7% during the second quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 1,425 shares of the blue-jean maker’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 833 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its stake in Levi Strauss & Co. by 133.5% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 3,286 shares of the blue-jean maker’s stock worth $51,000 after acquiring an additional 1,879 shares during the last quarter. LSV Asset Management bought a new stake in Levi Strauss & Co. during the third quarter worth approximately $117,000. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC increased its stake in Levi Strauss & Co. by 17,721.6% during the second quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 6,594 shares of the blue-jean maker’s stock worth $122,000 after acquiring an additional 6,557 shares during the last quarter. 69.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Levi Strauss & Co. Stock Up 2.0%

Shares of NYSE:LEVI opened at $21.76 on Friday. Levi Strauss & Co. has a 1 year low of $16.50 and a 1 year high of $24.82. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $20.73 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $21.06. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.37 billion, a PE ratio of 13.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 1.58 and a quick ratio of 0.97.

Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 7th. The blue-jean maker reported $0.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.37 by $0.05. Levi Strauss & Co. had a return on equity of 25.35% and a net margin of 9.52%.The business had revenue of $1.74 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.65 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.38 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Levi Strauss & Co. will post 1.5 EPS for the current year.

Levi Strauss & Co. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 6th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 22nd were given a dividend of $0.14 per share. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, April 22nd. Levi Strauss & Co.’s payout ratio is 35.67%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Levi Strauss & Co. in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. They set a “buy” rating and a $25.00 price objective on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised Levi Strauss & Co. from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, April 11th. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $27.00 price objective on shares of Levi Strauss & Co. in a research note on Wednesday, April 1st. BTIG Research reissued a “buy” rating and set a $27.00 price objective on shares of Levi Strauss & Co. in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price objective on Levi Strauss & Co. from $33.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $26.69.

Insider Buying and Selling at Levi Strauss & Co.

In other Levi Strauss & Co. news, EVP Karyn Hillman sold 38,938 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.91, for a total transaction of $892,069.58. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 91,522 shares in the company, valued at $2,096,769.02. The trade was a 29.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Harmit J. Singh sold 121,767 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.52, for a total value of $2,863,959.84. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 148,757 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,498,764.64. This trade represents a 45.01% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 370,705 shares of company stock worth $8,399,029 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 1.08% of the company’s stock.

Levi Strauss & Co. Profile

Levi Strauss & Co is a global apparel company best known for its denim jeans and casual wear. Founded in 1853 in San Francisco by Bavarian immigrant Levi Strauss, the company pioneered the modern blue jean with the introduction of rivet-reinforced work pants. Over its more than 160-year history, Levi Strauss has evolved into a lifestyle brand, offering a broad portfolio that includes denim for men, women and children, as well as tops, outerwear, footwear and accessories.

The company’s flagship label, Levi’s®, is recognized worldwide for its iconic styles such as the 501® Original Fit Jeans, while additional brands, including Dockers®, Target core metric, and Denizen® by Levi’s, cater to diverse price points and consumer segments.