Citigroup Reiterates “Neutral” Rating for Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI)

Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI)‘s stock had its “neutral” rating reiterated by stock analysts at Citigroup in a research report issued on Wednesday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. They presently have a $19.00 target price on the blue-jean maker’s stock, up from their prior target price of $14.00. Citigroup’s price target suggests a potential upside of 7.07% from the company’s current price.

A number of other research firms also recently weighed in on LEVI. Telsey Advisory Group increased their target price on shares of Levi Strauss & Co. from $19.00 to $21.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 15th. Bank of America upgraded Levi Strauss & Co. from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $17.00 to $20.00 in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Levi Strauss & Co. from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Guggenheim boosted their target price on Levi Strauss & Co. from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on Levi Strauss & Co. from $25.00 to $20.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Levi Strauss & Co. has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $20.45.

Levi Strauss & Co. Stock Down 1.0%

LEVI stock opened at $17.75 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $7.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.13, a P/E/G ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a current ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $15.87 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $16.90. Levi Strauss & Co. has a 1-year low of $12.17 and a 1-year high of $24.34.

Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI) last released its earnings results on Monday, April 7th. The blue-jean maker reported $0.38 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.28 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $1.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.54 billion. Levi Strauss & Co. had a return on equity of 25.88% and a net margin of 3.32%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.26 EPS. Analysts expect that Levi Strauss & Co. will post 1.27 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LEVI. Bayforest Capital Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. in the first quarter worth about $402,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its holdings in Levi Strauss & Co. by 3.4% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 1,597,687 shares of the blue-jean maker’s stock worth $24,908,000 after acquiring an additional 52,332 shares during the period. Aristeia Capital L.L.C. purchased a new stake in Levi Strauss & Co. in the 1st quarter worth approximately $516,000. Caxton Associates LLP purchased a new stake in Levi Strauss & Co. in the 1st quarter worth approximately $241,000. Finally, Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd lifted its stake in Levi Strauss & Co. by 3.2% in the 1st quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd now owns 118,105 shares of the blue-jean maker’s stock worth $1,841,000 after purchasing an additional 3,633 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.14% of the company’s stock.

About Levi Strauss & Co.

Levi Strauss & Co engages in the design, marketing, and sale of apparel products. The company offers jeans, casual and dress pants, tops, shorts, skirts, jackets, footwear, and related accessories. It operates through the following geographical segments: Americas, Europe, and Asia. The company was founded by Levi Strauss in 1853 and is headquartered in San Francisco, CA.