Kontoor Brands, Inc. (NYSE:KTB) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Kontoor Brands, Inc. (NYSE:KTB) has received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the seven analysts that are covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1-year target price among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $95.00.

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Kontoor Brands from $80.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Guggenheim boosted their target price on shares of Kontoor Brands from $80.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. UBS Group raised their price target on Kontoor Brands from $103.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Barclays upped their price objective on Kontoor Brands from $83.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut Kontoor Brands from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $89.00 to $93.00 in a research report on Friday, November 1st.

Kontoor Brands Price Performance

Shares of KTB opened at $86.10 on Monday. Kontoor Brands has a twelve month low of $52.95 and a twelve month high of $94.82. The company has a market capitalization of $4.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.04 and a beta of 1.20. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $88.47 and a 200 day moving average of $79.54. The company has a quick ratio of 1.42, a current ratio of 2.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.09.

Kontoor Brands (NYSE:KTB) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.37 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.26 by $0.11. Kontoor Brands had a return on equity of 73.99% and a net margin of 9.72%. The business had revenue of $670.19 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $663.45 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.22 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Kontoor Brands will post 4.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kontoor Brands Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 19th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 9th were issued a dividend of $0.52 per share. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.42%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 9th. This is a positive change from Kontoor Brands’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. Kontoor Brands’s payout ratio is currently 46.85%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Thomas L. Doerr, Jr. sold 9,039 shares of Kontoor Brands stock in a transaction on Friday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.71, for a total transaction of $729,537.69. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 18,179 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,467,227.09. The trade was a 33.21 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Scott H. Baxter sold 119,160 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.60, for a total value of $9,961,776.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 331,916 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $27,748,177.60. The trade was a 26.42 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 2.50% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Kontoor Brands

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC boosted its stake in Kontoor Brands by 3.0% in the 4th quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 4,775 shares of the company’s stock worth $408,000 after purchasing an additional 141 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in Kontoor Brands by 26.0% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 882 shares of the company’s stock valued at $75,000 after acquiring an additional 182 shares in the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC increased its holdings in Kontoor Brands by 2.2% in the 2nd quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 9,340 shares of the company’s stock valued at $616,000 after acquiring an additional 203 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its stake in Kontoor Brands by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 51,305 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,382,000 after purchasing an additional 210 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Kontoor Brands by 242.5% during the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 387 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 274 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.06% of the company’s stock.

About Kontoor Brands

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.