Czech National Bank Boosts Stock Position in Ralph Lauren Co. (NYSE:RL)

Czech National Bank lifted its stake in Ralph Lauren Co. (NYSE:RL) by 6.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 8,721 shares of the textile maker’s stock after purchasing an additional 561 shares during the quarter. Czech National Bank’s holdings in Ralph Lauren were worth $2,014,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in RL. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Ralph Lauren by 2.8% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 492,787 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $95,537,000 after purchasing an additional 13,640 shares during the last quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP raised its position in shares of Ralph Lauren by 145.8% during the 3rd quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP now owns 59,927 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $11,618,000 after buying an additional 35,550 shares during the period. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund acquired a new position in Ralph Lauren in the third quarter valued at approximately $1,819,000. CWA Asset Management Group LLC grew its position in Ralph Lauren by 31.9% in the fourth quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 11,913 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $2,752,000 after acquiring an additional 2,880 shares during the period. Finally, Quest Partners LLC increased its stake in Ralph Lauren by 210.1% during the third quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 6,167 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $1,196,000 after acquiring an additional 4,178 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.91% of the company’s stock.

Ralph Lauren Price Performance

Ralph Lauren stock opened at $237.54 on Friday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $226.70 and its two-hundred day moving average is $196.92. The firm has a market cap of $14.75 billion, a PE ratio of 22.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 1.49. The company has a quick ratio of 1.18, a current ratio of 1.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. Ralph Lauren Co. has a 52-week low of $134.90 and a 52-week high of $245.92.

Ralph Lauren (NYSE:RL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The textile maker reported $2.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.43 by $0.11. Ralph Lauren had a return on equity of 29.44% and a net margin of 10.15%. The business had revenue of $1.73 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.68 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.10 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Ralph Lauren Co. will post 11.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ralph Lauren Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 27th were given a dividend of $0.825 per share. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.39%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 27th. Ralph Lauren’s dividend payout ratio is presently 31.46%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on RL. Guggenheim increased their price target on Ralph Lauren from $200.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, October 28th. StockNews.com raised shares of Ralph Lauren from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on shares of Ralph Lauren from $171.00 to $193.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Ralph Lauren from $200.00 to $257.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Finally, Argus upgraded shares of Ralph Lauren from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $250.00 target price for the company in a report on Tuesday, December 31st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Ralph Lauren has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $228.09.

Ralph Lauren Profile

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.