Candriam S.C.A. Buys 17,185 Shares of Ralph Lauren Corporation $RL

Candriam S.C.A. lifted its stake in shares of Ralph Lauren Corporation (NYSE:RL) by 15.0% in the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 131,593 shares of the textile maker’s stock after purchasing an additional 17,185 shares during the quarter. Candriam S.C.A.’s holdings in Ralph Lauren were worth $45,267,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. M&T Bank Corp raised its position in Ralph Lauren by 6,216.7% during the 4th quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 73,337 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $25,933,000 after purchasing an additional 72,176 shares during the last quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. grew its position in shares of Ralph Lauren by 28.1% in the 4th quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 41,688 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $14,741,000 after buying an additional 9,133 shares during the last quarter. Vest Financial LLC grew its position in shares of Ralph Lauren by 177.9% in the 4th quarter. Vest Financial LLC now owns 54,701 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $19,343,000 after buying an additional 35,016 shares during the last quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Ralph Lauren by 106.8% in the fourth quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 63,180 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $22,552,000 after buying an additional 32,622 shares during the period. Finally, Patton Fund Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Ralph Lauren by 2,184.8% in the fourth quarter. Patton Fund Management Inc. now owns 22,848 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $8,079,000 after buying an additional 21,848 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.91% of the company’s stock.

Ralph Lauren Stock Performance

Shares of RL stock opened at $395.36 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $377.88 and a 200-day moving average of $365.79. The company has a market cap of $23.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.34. The company has a quick ratio of 1.57, a current ratio of 2.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. Ralph Lauren Corporation has a 52 week low of $273.04 and a 52 week high of $421.60.

Ralph Lauren (NYSE:RL) last released 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. The company had revenue of $1.98 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.85 billion. Ralph Lauren had a net margin of 11.60% and a return on equity of 38.17%. Ralph Lauren’s quarterly revenue was up 16.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.27 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Ralph Lauren Corporation 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. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 26th were issued a dividend of $1.00 per share. 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 1.0%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 26th. Ralph Lauren’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 26.47%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have issued reports on RL shares. Telsey Advisory Group raised their price target on shares of Ralph Lauren from $435.00 to $460.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of Ralph Lauren from $400.00 to $450.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Ralph Lauren from $430.00 to $439.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Ralph Lauren from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Friday, May 15th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Ralph Lauren from $400.00 to $415.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Fifteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ralph Lauren presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $430.07.

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.