Ralph Lauren (NYSE:RL) Reaches New 1-Year High Following Strong Earnings

Ralph Lauren Co. (NYSE:RL) shares hit a new 52-week high on Thursday following a stronger than expected earnings report. The company traded as high as $289.07 and last traded at $284.79, with a volume of 180003 shares. The stock had previously closed at $249.00.

The textile maker reported $4.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.46 by $0.36. Ralph Lauren had a return on equity of 29.44% and a net margin of 10.15%.

Ralph Lauren Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 10th. Investors of record on Friday, December 27th were given a $0.825 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 27th. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.21%. Ralph Lauren’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 31.46%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on RL. Argus upgraded Ralph Lauren from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $250.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, December 31st. Cfra set a $171.00 price objective on Ralph Lauren in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. UBS Group raised their price target on Ralph Lauren from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Raymond James downgraded Ralph Lauren from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, BNP Paribas upgraded Ralph Lauren to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $260.64.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of RL. Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its stake in shares of Ralph Lauren by 281.1% in the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 202 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 149 shares during the last quarter. Huntington National Bank grew its stake in shares of Ralph Lauren by 86.6% in the third quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 222 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. True Wealth Design LLC grew its stake in shares of Ralph Lauren by 8,933.3% in the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 271 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 268 shares during the last quarter. AM Squared Ltd bought a new stake in Ralph Lauren during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $58,000. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its position in Ralph Lauren by 333.3% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 351 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $81,000 after acquiring an additional 270 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.91% of the company’s stock.

Ralph Lauren Stock Performance

The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $238.24 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $205.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 1.18 and a current ratio of 1.72. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.98, a PEG ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 1.49.

About Ralph Lauren

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.