Insider Buying: Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI) Director Buys 500 Shares of Stock

Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI) Director Christopher J. Mccormick acquired 500 shares of Levi Strauss & Co. stock in a transaction on Monday, May 6th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $22.11 per share, with a total value of $11,055.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,055. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link.

Levi Strauss & Co. Stock Performance

NYSE:LEVI opened at $22.17 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $8.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 71.52, a PEG ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $19.70 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $17.19. Levi Strauss & Co. has a twelve month low of $12.41 and a twelve month high of $22.39.

Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 3rd. The blue-jean maker reported $0.26 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.21 by $0.05. Levi Strauss & Co. had a net margin of 2.05% and a return on equity of 20.68%. The business had revenue of $1.56 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.55 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.34 earnings per share. Levi Strauss & Co.’s quarterly revenue was down 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Levi Strauss & Co. will post 1.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Levi Strauss & Co. Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 23rd. Investors of record on Thursday, May 9th will be paid a $0.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 8th. This represents a $0.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.17%. Levi Strauss & Co.’s dividend payout ratio is presently 154.84%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LEVI. Ceredex Value Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. during the 4th quarter valued at about $24,325,000. M. Kulyk & Associates LLC grew its position in Levi Strauss & Co. by 2,096.4% during the third quarter. M. Kulyk & Associates LLC now owns 1,252,500 shares of the blue-jean maker’s stock valued at $17,009,000 after acquiring an additional 1,195,475 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors grew its position in Levi Strauss & Co. by 17.8% during the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 6,625,378 shares of the blue-jean maker’s stock valued at $109,584,000 after acquiring an additional 1,000,000 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. by 7.6% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 8,626,322 shares of the blue-jean maker’s stock worth $117,145,000 after acquiring an additional 610,838 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hudson Bay Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. in the 3rd quarter valued at $7,105,000. Institutional investors own 69.14% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have weighed in on LEVI shares. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Levi Strauss & Co. from $17.00 to $20.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, April 5th. TheStreet raised Levi Strauss & Co. from a “c+” rating to a “b-” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 13th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on Levi Strauss & Co. from $17.00 to $24.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Levi Strauss & Co. from $17.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group lifted their target price on Levi Strauss & Co. from $22.00 to $24.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $20.56.

Levi Strauss & Co. Company Profile

Levi Strauss & Co designs, markets, and sells apparels and related accessories for men, women, and children worldwide. The company offers jeans, casual and dress pants, activewears, tops, shorts, skirts, dresses, jumpsuits, shirts, sweaters, jackets, footwear, and related accessories under the Levi's, Dockers, Signature by Levi Strauss & Co, Denizen, and Beyond Yoga brands.