Handelsinvest Investeringsforvaltning Sells 637 Shares of Ralph Lauren Co. (NYSE:RL)

Handelsinvest Investeringsforvaltning lessened its holdings in shares of Ralph Lauren Co. (NYSE:RL) by 34.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,226 shares of the textile maker’s stock after selling 637 shares during the quarter. Handelsinvest Investeringsforvaltning’s holdings in Ralph Lauren were worth $230,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in RL. Boston Partners lifted its stake in shares of Ralph Lauren by 67.2% in the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 1,214,000 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $175,001,000 after purchasing an additional 487,882 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ralph Lauren by 71.6% during the 4th quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 794,127 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $114,513,000 after buying an additional 331,413 shares in the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Ralph Lauren by 10,207.7% in the 1st quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 325,208 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $61,061,000 after buying an additional 322,053 shares during the period. Artemis Investment Management LLP increased its stake in shares of Ralph Lauren by 11,052.5% in the 1st quarter. Artemis Investment Management LLP now owns 177,548 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $33,325,000 after acquiring an additional 175,956 shares in the last quarter. Finally, King Luther Capital Management Corp purchased a new position in Ralph Lauren during the 4th quarter valued at about $18,944,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.91% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Ralph Lauren

In other news, COO Jane Nielsen sold 67,243 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $171.25, for a total value of $11,515,363.75. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 44,591 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,636,208.75. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 11.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on RL shares. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Ralph Lauren from $244.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 16th. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on Ralph Lauren in a research note on Tuesday, April 30th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $195.00 price target on the stock. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on Ralph Lauren from $192.00 to $197.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 9th. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $195.00 target price on shares of Ralph Lauren in a research note on Thursday, May 23rd. Finally, Argus reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Ralph Lauren in a research report on Tuesday. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Ralph Lauren currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $170.50.

Ralph Lauren Stock Performance

RL traded down $1.11 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $167.63. 20,020 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 961,855. The company’s 50-day moving average is $174.81 and its 200 day moving average is $167.45. The company has a quick ratio of 1.68, a current ratio of 2.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.48 billion, a PE ratio of 17.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 1.52. Ralph Lauren Co. has a 52 week low of $108.60 and a 52 week high of $192.03.

Ralph Lauren (NYSE:RL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 23rd. The textile maker reported $1.71 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.65 by $0.06. Ralph Lauren had a net margin of 9.75% and a return on equity of 27.90%. The company had revenue of $1.57 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.57 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.90 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Ralph Lauren Co. will post 11.07 EPS for the current year.

Ralph Lauren Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 12th. Investors of record on Friday, June 28th will be issued a $0.825 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 28th. This represents a $3.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.97%. This is a positive change from Ralph Lauren’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. Ralph Lauren’s payout ratio is presently 33.95%.

About Ralph Lauren

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, lighting, tabletop, kitchen linens, floor coverings, and giftware; and fragrances.