Short Interest in Kontoor Brands, Inc. (NYSE:KTB) Decreases By 5.5%

Kontoor Brands, Inc. (NYSE:KTB) saw a significant drop in short interest in the month of May. As of May 31st, there was short interest totalling 4,110,000 shares, a drop of 5.5% from the May 15th total of 4,350,000 shares. Approximately 7.5% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 589,800 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 7.0 days.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

KTB has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of Kontoor Brands from $77.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 14th. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Kontoor Brands from $65.00 to $76.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 3rd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on Kontoor Brands from $68.00 to $77.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Kontoor Brands presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $77.20.

Insider Transactions at Kontoor Brands

In related news, CEO Scott H. Baxter sold 29,212 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.52, for a total value of $2,089,242.24. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 318,188 shares in the company, valued at $22,756,805.76. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other news, CAO Susan Denise Sumner sold 4,713 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.36, for a total transaction of $341,032.68. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 15,379 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,112,824.44. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Scott H. Baxter sold 29,212 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.52, for a total value of $2,089,242.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 318,188 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $22,756,805.76. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 2.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Kontoor Brands

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in KTB. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Kontoor Brands during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC grew its position in shares of Kontoor Brands by 5,710.0% in the 3rd quarter. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 581 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 571 shares during the last quarter. Principal Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Kontoor Brands in the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. Oakworth Capital Inc. raised its position in shares of Kontoor Brands by 157.8% during the fourth quarter. Oakworth Capital Inc. now owns 781 shares of the company’s stock worth $49,000 after acquiring an additional 478 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its stake in shares of Kontoor Brands by 121.4% in the third quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 1,304 shares of the company’s stock worth $57,000 after acquiring an additional 715 shares during the period. 93.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Kontoor Brands Stock Down 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE:KTB opened at $68.22 on Thursday. Kontoor Brands has a 52-week low of $37.10 and a 52-week high of $74.90. The company has a market capitalization of $3.81 billion, a PE ratio of 17.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.96, a quick ratio of 1.42 and a current ratio of 2.70. The company has a fifty day moving average of $66.70 and a 200-day moving average of $62.00.

Kontoor Brands (NYSE:KTB) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The company reported $1.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.90 by $0.26. Kontoor Brands had a return on equity of 71.45% and a net margin of 8.72%. The business had revenue of $631.20 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $607.91 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.16 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Kontoor Brands will post 4.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kontoor Brands Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 20th. Investors of record on Monday, June 10th will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 10th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.93%. Kontoor Brands’s dividend payout ratio is presently 50.63%.

Kontoor Brands Company Profile

Kontoor Brands, Inc, a lifestyle apparel company, designs, produces, procures, markets, distributes, and licenses denim, apparel, footwear, and accessories, primarily under the Wrangler and Lee brands. The company operates through two segments: Wrangler and Lee. It licenses and sells apparel under the Rock & Republic brand name.