Swedbank AB Acquires 25,000 Shares of Ralph Lauren Corporation $RL

Swedbank AB increased its holdings in shares of Ralph Lauren Corporation (NYSE:RL) by 20.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 150,000 shares of the textile maker’s stock after purchasing an additional 25,000 shares during the period. Swedbank AB owned approximately 0.25% of Ralph Lauren worth $51,598,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Blueline Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ralph Lauren during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. JPL Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ralph Lauren in the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ralph Lauren during the 2nd quarter valued at $28,000. Aventura Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Ralph Lauren in the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Finally, MUFG Securities EMEA plc bought a new stake in Ralph Lauren in the second quarter valued at $32,000. 67.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on RL shares. Citigroup upgraded shares of Ralph Lauren from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $360.00 to $400.00 in a report on Tuesday, March 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $437.00 target price on shares of Ralph Lauren in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Telsey Advisory Group upped their price target on Ralph Lauren from $435.00 to $460.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 23rd. Wall Street Zen upgraded Ralph Lauren from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday. Finally, BTIG Research reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $450.00 price objective on shares of Ralph Lauren in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. Fifteen equities research 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, Ralph Lauren has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $430.07.

Ralph Lauren Price Performance

RL opened at $395.67 on Wednesday. Ralph Lauren Corporation has a 1 year low of $273.04 and a 1 year high of $421.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 2.13 and a quick ratio of 1.57. The company has a market capitalization of $23.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.19, a P/E/G ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 1.34. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $376.54 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $365.33.

Ralph Lauren (NYSE:RL) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 21st. The textile maker reported $2.80 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.52 by $0.28. Ralph Lauren had a net margin of 11.60% and a return on equity of 38.17%. The company had revenue of $1.98 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.85 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.27 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that Ralph Lauren Corporation will post 18.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ralph Lauren Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 26th will be paid a $1.00 dividend. This is a positive change from Ralph Lauren’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.91. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 26th. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. Ralph Lauren’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 26.47%.

Ralph Lauren Company 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.