Ralph Lauren Corporation (NYSE:RL) Short Interest Update

Ralph Lauren Corporation (NYSE:RL) was the target of a significant growth in short interest in August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totaling 1,560,000 shares, a growth of 25.8% from the August 15th total of 1,240,000 shares. Currently, 4.2% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 677,800 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.3 days. Based on an average daily volume of 677,800 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.3 days. Currently, 4.2% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Ralph Lauren Stock Down 2.7%

Shares of Ralph Lauren stock opened at $306.09 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a current ratio of 1.84. Ralph Lauren has a 52-week low of $176.61 and a 52-week high of $321.77. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.45, a P/E/G ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 1.60. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $297.70 and its 200-day moving average price is $263.03.

Ralph Lauren (NYSE:RL) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The textile maker reported $3.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.50 by $0.27. Ralph Lauren had a net margin of 10.91% and a return on equity of 33.72%. The firm had revenue of $1.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.65 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.70 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 13.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Ralph Lauren will post 12.01 EPS for the current year.

Ralph Lauren Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 10th. Investors of record on Friday, September 26th will be issued a $0.9125 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 26th. This represents a $3.65 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.2%. Ralph Lauren’s payout ratio is 29.15%.

Ralph Lauren announced that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, May 22nd that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the textile maker to buy up to 8.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Institutional Trading of Ralph Lauren

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in Ralph Lauren by 22.3% in the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,512,903 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $333,958,000 after acquiring an additional 275,391 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Ralph Lauren by 55.7% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,157,867 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $245,468,000 after acquiring an additional 414,275 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Ralph Lauren by 1.6% in the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,014,880 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $277,818,000 after acquiring an additional 15,785 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings in Ralph Lauren by 13.2% in the second quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,007,745 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $276,407,000 after acquiring an additional 117,494 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC boosted its holdings in Ralph Lauren by 8,937.8% in the second quarter. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC now owns 963,340 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $264,225,000 after acquiring an additional 952,681 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 67.91% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on RL. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Ralph Lauren from $250.00 to $295.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Ralph Lauren from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, September 13th. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Ralph Lauren from $360.00 to $353.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Zacks Research raised shares of Ralph Lauren to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 12th. Finally, Cfra Research raised shares of Ralph Lauren from a “moderate sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, August 11th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have given a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $311.41.

Ralph Lauren Company Profile

Ralph Lauren Corporation designs, markets, and distributes lifestyle products in North America, Europe, Asia, and internationally. The company offers apparel, including a range of men’s, women’s, and children’s clothing; footwear and accessories, which comprise casual shoes, dress shoes, boots, sneakers, sandals, eyewear, watches, fashion and fine jewelry, scarves, hats, gloves, and umbrellas, as well as leather goods, such as handbags, luggage, small leather goods, and belts; home products consisting of bed and bath lines, furniture, fabric and wallcoverings, floor coverings, lighting, tabletop, kitchen linens, floor coverings, dining, decorative accessories, and giftware; and fragrances.