Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Sells 1,442 Shares of Ralph Lauren Corporation $RL

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. cut its stake in Ralph Lauren Corporation (NYSE:RL) by 32.8% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 2,958 shares of the textile maker’s stock after selling 1,442 shares during the period. Jefferies Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Ralph Lauren were worth $1,046,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in RL. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC grew its holdings in shares of Ralph Lauren by 8,937.8% in the second quarter. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC now owns 963,340 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $264,225,000 after purchasing an additional 952,681 shares during the last quarter. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Ralph Lauren in the third quarter worth about $74,841,000. Two Sigma Investments LP lifted its holdings in shares of Ralph Lauren by 137.1% in the 3rd quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 362,022 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $113,516,000 after buying an additional 209,330 shares during the period. Scopus Asset Management L.P. lifted its holdings in shares of Ralph Lauren by 190.3% in the 3rd quarter. Scopus Asset Management L.P. now owns 221,500 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $69,454,000 after buying an additional 145,189 shares during the period. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ralph Lauren by 390.6% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 145,964 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $51,614,000 after buying an additional 116,211 shares during the period. 67.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Ralph Lauren Trading Down 1.3%

Ralph Lauren stock opened at $371.35 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $357.10 and a two-hundred day moving average of $357.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a current ratio of 2.13. Ralph Lauren Corporation has a one year low of $258.13 and a one year high of $393.41. The stock has a market cap of $22.48 billion, a PE ratio of 24.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 1.37.

Ralph Lauren (NYSE:RL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 21st. The textile maker reported $2.80 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.52 by $0.28. Ralph Lauren had a return on equity of 38.17% and a net margin of 11.60%.The company had revenue of $1.98 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.85 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.27 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 16.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that Ralph Lauren Corporation will post 18.22 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ralph Lauren Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 10th. Investors of record on Friday, June 26th will be given a dividend of $1.00 per share. This is an increase from Ralph Lauren’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.91. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 26th. Ralph Lauren’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 24.16%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on RL shares. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $435.00 target price on shares of Ralph Lauren in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $437.00 target price on shares of Ralph Lauren in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their target price on Ralph Lauren from $425.00 to $410.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 6th. Citigroup upgraded Ralph Lauren from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $360.00 to $400.00 in a report on Tuesday, March 24th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $400.00 target price on shares of Ralph Lauren in a report on Thursday, May 21st. Fifteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Ralph Lauren has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $428.29.

Ralph Lauren Profile

Ralph Lauren Corporation (NYSE: RL) is a global designer, marketer and distributor of premium lifestyle products under the Ralph Lauren name and a portfolio of related brands. The company, founded by Ralph Lauren in 1967 and headquartered in New York City, has grown from a single line of men’s neckties into a global lifestyle business that spans apparel, accessories and home goods.

Ralph Lauren’s product assortment includes menswear, womenswear and childrenswear along with footwear, leather goods, eyewear, fragrances and home furnishings.