Kontoor Brands (NYSE:KTB) Stock Price Up 4.8% – Here’s Why

Shares of Kontoor Brands, Inc. (NYSE:KTB) rose 4.8% during trading on Friday. The company traded as high as $81.28 and last traded at $81.4570. 60,337 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 92% from the average session volume of 800,685 shares. The stock had previously closed at $77.76.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

KTB has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. BTIG Research reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $105.00 price objective on shares of Kontoor Brands in a report on Tuesday, September 15th. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Kontoor Brands from $96.00 to $99.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 13th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Kontoor Brands from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $82.00 to $89.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 14th. Needham & Company LLC began coverage on Kontoor Brands in a research report on Friday, October 16th. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. Finally, Zacks Research raised Kontoor Brands from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Kontoor Brands presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $95.33.

Kontoor Brands Trading Up 3.4%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.99, a current ratio of 1.69 and a quick ratio of 0.92. The business has a fifty day moving average of $70.95 and a 200-day moving average of $73.38. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.43 and a beta of 0.85.

Kontoor Brands (NYSE:KTB) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 5th. The company reported $1.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.34 by $0.16. Kontoor Brands had a net margin of 6.51% and a return on equity of 59.17%. The company had revenue of $685.35 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $694.18 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.44 EPS. Kontoor Brands’s revenue was down 19.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Kontoor Brands, Inc. will post 5.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kontoor Brands Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 18th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 8th will be issued a $0.54 dividend. This represents a $2.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 8th. This is an increase from Kontoor Brands’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.53. Kontoor Brands’s payout ratio is presently 59.05%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Joseph A. Alkire sold 9,472 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.92, for a total transaction of $719,114.24. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 44,803 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,401,443.76. This trade represents a 17.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 1.80% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Kontoor Brands during the 3rd quarter worth $265,000. First Trust Advisors LP raised its position in shares of Kontoor Brands by 7.0% during the third quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 36,565 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,305,000 after purchasing an additional 2,383 shares during the period. Advisors Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Kontoor Brands during the third quarter worth $14,757,000. Private Advisor Group LLC raised its position in shares of Kontoor Brands by 135.9% during the third quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 6,030 shares of the company’s stock worth $380,000 after purchasing an additional 3,474 shares during the period. Finally, Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. purchased a new stake in shares of Kontoor Brands during the third quarter valued at $1,575,000. Institutional investors own 93.06% of the company’s stock.

Kontoor Brands Company Profile

Kontoor Brands is an apparel company focused on denim and casual clothing. Its portfolio includes Wrangler and Lee, brands known for jeans and other everyday apparel, as well as Rock & Republic. The company sells products such as jeans, shirts, jackets, shorts and related apparel through wholesale partners and direct-to-consumer channels, including its own retail stores and e-commerce operations. Kontoor Brands serves customers in markets around the world. It became an independent public company in 2019 after being spun off from VF Corporation.