Ralph Lauren Corporation (NYSE:RL) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Ralph Lauren Corporation (NYSE:RL) has earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the eighteen brokerages that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month target price among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $430.0714.

A number of brokerages have weighed in on RL. Zacks Research downgraded Ralph Lauren from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Telsey Advisory Group raised their price objective on Ralph Lauren from $435.00 to $460.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Bank of America lifted their target price on Ralph Lauren from $400.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. Citigroup raised Ralph Lauren from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $360.00 to $400.00 in a report on Tuesday, March 24th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC restated a “buy” rating and issued a $400.00 price target on shares of Ralph Lauren in a research note on Thursday, May 21st.

Institutional Trading of Ralph Lauren

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of RL. Summit Global Investments raised its position in shares of Ralph Lauren by 2.0% in the first quarter. Summit Global Investments now owns 1,510 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $519,000 after buying an additional 29 shares in the last quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund boosted its stake in Ralph Lauren by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 4,425 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $1,565,000 after buying an additional 31 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its position in Ralph Lauren by 14.1% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 251 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $90,000 after buying an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. Polymer Capital Management US LLC grew its position in Ralph Lauren by 1.1% during the third quarter. Polymer Capital Management US LLC now owns 3,230 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $1,013,000 after buying an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB increased its stake in Ralph Lauren by 23.4% in the 4th quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 179 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $63,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.91% of the company’s stock.

Ralph Lauren Stock Performance

Shares of RL opened at $380.64 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $22.66 billion, a PE ratio of 25.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 1.34. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $379.56 and a 200-day moving average of $366.31. Ralph Lauren has a one year low of $273.04 and a one year high of $421.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 2.13 and a quick ratio of 1.57.

Ralph Lauren (NYSE:RL) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 21st. The textile maker reported $2.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.52 by $0.28. Ralph Lauren had a net margin of 11.60% and a return on equity of 38.17%. The company had revenue of $1.98 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.85 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.27 EPS. Ralph Lauren’s quarterly revenue was up 16.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Ralph Lauren will post 18.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Ralph Lauren Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 26th were issued a $1.00 dividend. This is an increase from Ralph Lauren’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.91. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 26th. Ralph Lauren’s dividend payout ratio is presently 26.47%.

Ralph Lauren Company Profile

Ralph Lauren Corporation (NYSE: RL) is a global designer, marketer and distributor of premium lifestyle products under the Ralph Lauren name and a portfolio of related brands. The company, founded by Ralph Lauren in 1967 and headquartered in New York City, has grown from a single line of men’s neckties into a global lifestyle business that spans apparel, accessories and home goods.

Ralph Lauren’s product assortment includes menswear, womenswear and childrenswear along with footwear, leather goods, eyewear, fragrances and home furnishings.