Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Shares of Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI) have received an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the seven analysts that are covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and four have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $20.56.

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on shares of Levi Strauss & Co. from $17.00 to $24.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Levi Strauss & Co. from $19.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, April 8th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Levi Strauss & Co. from $17.00 to $20.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. TD Cowen lifted their price target on shares of Levi Strauss & Co. from $19.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Levi Strauss & Co. from $17.00 to $20.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, April 5th.

Levi Strauss & Co. Price Performance

Levi Strauss & Co. stock opened at $22.25 on Wednesday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $19.78 and its two-hundred day moving average is $17.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a current ratio of 1.43. The firm has a market cap of $8.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 71.76, a P/E/G ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 1.19. Levi Strauss & Co. has a 52 week low of $12.41 and a 52 week high of $22.40.

Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 3rd. The blue-jean maker reported $0.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.34 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Levi Strauss & Co. will post 1.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Levi Strauss & Co. Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 23rd. Investors of record on Thursday, May 9th will be given a $0.12 dividend. This represents a $0.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.16%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 8th. Levi Strauss & Co.’s dividend payout ratio is currently 154.84%.

Insider Transactions at Levi Strauss & Co.

In other Levi Strauss & Co. news, major shareholder Margaret E. Haas sold 9,462 shares of Levi Strauss & Co. stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.01, for a total value of $170,410.62. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Levi Strauss & Co. news, Director David A. Friedman sold 12,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.23, for a total transaction of $265,375.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 187,508 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,980,794.84. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Margaret E. Haas sold 9,462 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.01, for a total transaction of $170,410.62. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 251,318 shares of company stock valued at $5,166,704 over the last 90 days. 3.14% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LEVI. Cutter & CO Brokerage Inc. raised its position in Levi Strauss & Co. by 4.9% during the third quarter. Cutter & CO Brokerage Inc. now owns 17,000 shares of the blue-jean maker’s stock worth $231,000 after acquiring an additional 800 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. by 7.0% in the 4th quarter. Strategic Advisors LLC now owns 19,900 shares of the blue-jean maker’s stock valued at $329,000 after purchasing an additional 1,300 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its stake in Levi Strauss & Co. by 6.6% in the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 21,297 shares of the blue-jean maker’s stock valued at $352,000 after purchasing an additional 1,319 shares during the last quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Levi Strauss & Co. by 21.5% during the third quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 9,541 shares of the blue-jean maker’s stock worth $130,000 after purchasing an additional 1,690 shares during the period. Finally, KBC Group NV increased its position in Levi Strauss & Co. by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 110,756 shares of the blue-jean maker’s stock worth $1,832,000 after buying an additional 1,917 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 69.14% of the company’s stock.

About Levi Strauss & Co.

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.