III Capital Management Decreases Stake in Ralph Lauren Corporation $RL

III Capital Management decreased its position in Ralph Lauren Corporation (NYSE:RL) by 17.9% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 9,155 shares of the textile maker’s stock after selling 2,000 shares during the period. Ralph Lauren accounts for 0.5% of III Capital Management’s holdings, making the stock its 22nd biggest position. III Capital Management’s holdings in Ralph Lauren were worth $3,237,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund increased its stake in Ralph Lauren by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 4,425 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $1,565,000 after buying an additional 31 shares during the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Ralph Lauren by 14.1% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 251 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $90,000 after buying an additional 31 shares during the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Ralph Lauren by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc. now owns 11,762 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $3,688,000 after acquiring an additional 32 shares during the period. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB grew its position in shares of Ralph Lauren by 23.4% during the 4th quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 179 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $63,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares during the period. Finally, Polymer Capital Management US LLC grew its position in shares of Ralph Lauren by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. Polymer Capital Management US LLC now owns 3,230 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $1,013,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.91% of the company’s stock.

Ralph Lauren Stock Down 0.6%

RL opened at $404.16 on Thursday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $368.48 and a 200 day moving average of $361.27. The company has a market cap of $24.06 billion, a PE ratio of 26.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.02 and a beta of 1.35. Ralph Lauren Corporation has a 12 month low of $259.30 and a 12 month high of $421.60. The company has a current ratio of 2.13, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51.

Ralph Lauren (NYSE:RL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 21st. The textile maker reported $2.80 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.52 by $0.28. The company had revenue of $1.98 billion during 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 revenue for the quarter was up 16.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.27 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Ralph Lauren Corporation will post 18.33 EPS for the current year.

Ralph Lauren Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 10th. Investors of record on Friday, June 26th will be issued a $1.00 dividend. This is a boost from Ralph Lauren’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.91. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 26th. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. Ralph Lauren’s payout ratio is 24.16%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on RL shares. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Ralph Lauren from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Ralph Lauren from $480.00 to $511.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Ralph Lauren from $430.00 to $439.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “buy” rating and set a $437.00 target price on shares of Ralph Lauren in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and set a $400.00 target price on shares of Ralph Lauren in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. Fifteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ralph Lauren has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $428.29.

About Ralph Lauren

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.