Kontoor Brands (NYSE:KTB) Shares Down 5% Following Analyst Downgrade

Shares of Kontoor Brands, Inc. (NYSE:KTB) were down 5% during mid-day trading on Wednesday after Barclays lowered their price target on the stock from $100.00 to $93.00. Barclays currently has an overweight rating on the stock. Kontoor Brands traded as low as $72.00 and last traded at $70.85. Approximately 162,212 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 73% from the average daily volume of 595,634 shares. The stock had previously closed at $74.58.

Other analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. UBS Group reduced their price target on Kontoor Brands from $112.00 to $108.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Stifel Nicolaus downgraded shares of Kontoor Brands from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $89.00 to $93.00 in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Kontoor Brands from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Finally, Guggenheim lifted their price target on shares of Kontoor Brands from $80.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $95.17.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Kontoor Brands

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of KTB. Jennison Associates LLC boosted its position in Kontoor Brands by 73.2% during the third quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 757,426 shares of the company’s stock valued at $61,942,000 after acquiring an additional 320,117 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP lifted its stake in shares of Kontoor Brands by 97.3% in the 4th quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 579,844 shares of the company’s stock valued at $49,524,000 after purchasing an additional 285,897 shares during the period. Man Group plc boosted its position in shares of Kontoor Brands by 119.1% during the 4th quarter. Man Group plc now owns 466,065 shares of the company’s stock valued at $39,807,000 after purchasing an additional 253,360 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Kontoor Brands during the fourth quarter worth approximately $17,630,000. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Kontoor Brands by 16.6% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,402,701 shares of the company’s stock worth $119,827,000 after purchasing an additional 199,601 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.06% of the company’s stock.

Kontoor Brands Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.09, a current ratio of 2.50 and a quick ratio of 1.42. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $86.77 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $83.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.98, a P/E/G ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 1.19.

Kontoor Brands (NYSE:KTB) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 25th. The company reported $1.38 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.31 by $0.07. Kontoor Brands had a net margin of 9.72% and a return on equity of 73.99%. The company had revenue of $699.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $698.07 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.28 EPS. Kontoor Brands’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that Kontoor Brands, Inc. will post 4.82 EPS for the current year.

Kontoor Brands Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.52 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.94%. Kontoor Brands’s dividend payout ratio is currently 46.85%.

Kontoor Brands Company Profile

Kontoor Brands, Inc, a lifestyle apparel company, designs, produces, procures, markets, distributes, and licenses denim, apparel, footwear, and accessories, primarily under the Wrangler and Lee brands. The company operates through two segments: Wrangler and Lee. It licenses and sells apparel under the Rock & Republic brand name.