Victory Capital Management Inc. Sells 328,841 Shares of Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI)

Victory Capital Management Inc. cut its position in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI) by 64.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 183,471 shares of the blue-jean maker’s stock after selling 328,841 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Levi Strauss & Co. were worth $3,174,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of LEVI. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Matrix Trust Co increased its position in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. by 678.9% during the fourth quarter. Matrix Trust Co now owns 5,507 shares of the blue-jean maker’s stock valued at $95,000 after purchasing an additional 4,800 shares during the period. R Squared Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $105,000. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. increased its position in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. by 2,904.1% during the third quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. now owns 5,137 shares of the blue-jean maker’s stock valued at $112,000 after purchasing an additional 4,966 shares during the period. Finally, Manchester Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $115,000. 69.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Levi Strauss & Co. Price Performance

Levi Strauss & Co. stock opened at $16.11 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 1.42. The firm has a market cap of $6.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.97, a P/E/G ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.16. The business’s fifty day moving average is $17.75 and its two-hundred day moving average is $18.05. Levi Strauss & Co. has a 52 week low of $15.51 and a 52 week high of $24.34.

Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The blue-jean maker reported $0.50 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.48 by $0.02. Levi Strauss & Co. had a return on equity of 25.88% and a net margin of 3.32%. Equities research analysts forecast that Levi Strauss & Co. will post 1.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Levi Strauss & Co. Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 12th were paid a dividend of $0.13 per share. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.23%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 12th. Levi Strauss & Co.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 100.00%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director David A. Friedman sold 4,166 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.00, for a total transaction of $74,988.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 104,178 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,875,204. This represents a 3.85 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 3.14% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on LEVI. Guggenheim boosted their price objective on Levi Strauss & Co. from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Levi Strauss & Co. from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on Levi Strauss & Co. from $18.00 to $17.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Citigroup lowered their price target on Levi Strauss & Co. from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, UBS Group lowered their price target on Levi Strauss & Co. from $26.00 to $25.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $21.27.

Levi Strauss & Co. Company Profile

Levi Strauss & Co engages in the design, marketing, and sale of apparel products. The company offers jeans, casual and dress pants, tops, shorts, skirts, jackets, footwear, and related accessories. It operates through the following geographical segments: Americas, Europe, and Asia. The company was founded by Levi Strauss in 1853 and is headquartered in San Francisco, CA.