Carter’s (NYSE:CRI) Cut to “Hold” at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Carter’s (NYSE:CRI) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report issued on Saturday morning.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. UBS Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Carter’s in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. Zacks Research lowered Carter’s from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, May 25th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Carter’s from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $30.00 to $42.00 in a research report on Wednesday, June 17th. Monness Crespi & Hardt upped their target price on Carter’s from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of Carter’s from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $38.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $41.17.

Carter’s Stock Performance

NYSE:CRI opened at $38.72 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $39.71 and its 200-day moving average is $37.54. Carter’s has a 52-week low of $23.38 and a 52-week high of $44.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 1.72 and a current ratio of 2.80. The company has a market cap of $1.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.61 and a beta of 0.86.

Carter’s (NYSE:CRI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The textile maker reported $0.39 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.13 by $0.26. Carter’s had a net margin of 3.07% and a return on equity of 13.06%. The business had revenue of $681.11 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $660.59 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.66 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.1% on a year-over-year basis. Carter’s has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 0.020-0.060 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Carter’s will post 3.09 earnings per share for the current year.

Carter’s Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 5th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 26th were issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 26th. Carter’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 40.32%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Carter’s

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bank of America Corp DE increased its holdings in shares of Carter’s by 5.0% during the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 66,031 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $2,361,000 after buying an additional 3,132 shares in the last quarter. Amundi boosted its holdings in shares of Carter’s by 45.7% in the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 14,807 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $529,000 after acquiring an additional 4,647 shares in the last quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System boosted its holdings in shares of Carter’s by 31.2% in the 1st quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 46,269 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $1,655,000 after acquiring an additional 11,004 shares in the last quarter. Rubric Capital Management LP grew its position in Carter’s by 121.5% during the 1st quarter. Rubric Capital Management LP now owns 1,018,853 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $36,434,000 after acquiring an additional 558,853 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC bought a new stake in Carter’s during the 1st quarter worth approximately $4,896,000.

Carter’s Company Profile

Carter’s, Inc (NYSE: CRI) is a leading designer and marketer of infant and young children’s apparel in North America. Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, the company’s core business focuses on creating clothing and accessories for babies and children, including bodysuits, sleepwear, layette, outerwear and accessories that blend comfort, safety and style. Carter’s flagship brand is complemented by its OshKosh B’gosh line, which offers heritage-inspired designs and durable fabrics for toddlers and young kids.

The company distributes its products through a diversified platform that includes wholesale partnerships with major department stores and mass merchandisers, direct‐to‐consumer e-commerce sites, and an extensive network of company-operated retail stores.