L2 Asset Management LLC Reduces Stake in Ralph Lauren Corporation $RL

L2 Asset Management LLC reduced its holdings in Ralph Lauren Corporation (NYSE:RL) by 34.9% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 18,466 shares of the textile maker’s stock after selling 9,884 shares during the quarter. L2 Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Ralph Lauren were worth $5,790,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in RL. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in shares of Ralph Lauren by 13.2% in the 2nd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,007,745 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $276,407,000 after purchasing an additional 117,494 shares during the period. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH increased its position in shares of Ralph Lauren by 18.6% during the third quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH now owns 32,362 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $10,147,000 after buying an additional 5,075 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in Ralph Lauren by 7.4% in the third quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 265,601 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $83,282,000 after buying an additional 18,355 shares in the last quarter. Winnow Wealth LLC bought a new position in Ralph Lauren in the third quarter worth about $899,000. Finally, Rakuten Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Ralph Lauren in the third quarter worth about $86,719,000. Institutional investors own 67.91% of the company’s stock.

Ralph Lauren Stock Up 2.5%

NYSE:RL opened at $338.95 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 1.52 and a current ratio of 2.10. The firm has a market cap of $20.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.07, a P/E/G ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 1.47. Ralph Lauren Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $176.61 and a fifty-two week high of $389.15. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $359.32 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $343.21.

Ralph Lauren (NYSE:RL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The textile maker reported $6.22 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.80 by $0.42. Ralph Lauren had a net margin of 11.73% and a return on equity of 37.97%. The firm had revenue of $2.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.30 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $4.82 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.2% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Ralph Lauren Corporation will post 12.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ralph Lauren Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 27th will be paid a $0.9125 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 27th. This represents a $3.65 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. Ralph Lauren’s payout ratio is currently 24.85%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have weighed in on RL shares. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on Ralph Lauren from $425.00 to $410.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 6th. UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Ralph Lauren in a research report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Guggenheim started coverage on shares of Ralph Lauren in a research note on Tuesday, December 9th. They set a “neutral” rating for the company. Zacks Research raised Ralph Lauren from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 9th. Finally, Barclays upped their price target on Ralph Lauren from $416.00 to $430.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, March 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have given a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $389.06.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Patrice Louvet sold 47,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $354.22, for a total transaction of $16,648,340.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 85,552 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $30,304,229.44. This trade represents a 35.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 38.34% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About Ralph Lauren

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.