Carter’s, Inc. (NYSE:CRI) Shares Sold by Arizona State Retirement System

Arizona State Retirement System reduced its position in Carter’s, Inc. (NYSE:CRI) by 2.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 10,415 shares of the textile maker’s stock after selling 316 shares during the quarter. Arizona State Retirement System’s holdings in Carter’s were worth $780,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Coppell Advisory Solutions Corp. purchased a new stake in shares of Carter’s during the fourth quarter worth approximately $35,000. Ronald Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in shares of Carter’s by 366.7% during the third quarter. Ronald Blue Trust Inc. now owns 490 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 385 shares during the last quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust raised its stake in shares of Carter’s by 159.4% during the first quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 415 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 255 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in shares of Carter’s by 28.6% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 630 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 140 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Carter’s by 365.4% during the fourth quarter. Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. now owns 712 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 559 shares during the last quarter.

Carter’s Trading Down 0.9 %

NYSE:CRI opened at $71.32 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $2.61 billion, a PE ratio of 11.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 2.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. Carter’s, Inc. has a 52-week low of $60.65 and a 52-week high of $88.03. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $81.04 and a 200-day simple moving average of $74.56.

Carter’s (NYSE:CRI) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 27th. The textile maker reported $2.76 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.52 by $0.24. The firm had revenue of $858.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $867.81 million. Carter’s had a return on equity of 28.79% and a net margin of 7.89%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.29 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Carter’s, Inc. will post 6.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Carter’s Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Investors of record on Monday, March 11th were given a dividend of $0.80 per share. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 8th. This is a boost from Carter’s’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. Carter’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 51.04%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have issued reports on the company. Monness Crespi & Hardt cut Carter’s from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, February 26th. TheStreet upgraded Carter’s from a “c+” rating to a “b-” rating in a research report on Friday, December 22nd. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on Carter’s from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 28th. Citigroup increased their price objective on Carter’s from $60.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 21st. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Carter’s from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and five have assigned a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $75.75.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Mark Hipp sold 1,875 shares of Carter’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $81.74, for a total transaction of $153,262.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 10,216 shares in the company, valued at approximately $835,055.84. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 3.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About Carter’s

Carter's, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, designs, sources, and markets branded childrenswear under the Carter's, OshKosh, Skip Hop, Child of Mine, Just One You, Simple Joys, Little Planet, and other brands in the United States and internationally. It operates through three segments: U.S.