Ralph Lauren Corporation (NYSE:RL) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Ralph Lauren Corporation (NYSE:RL) has been given a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” by the eighteen brokerages that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $428.2857.

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Evercore set a $420.00 price objective on shares of Ralph Lauren and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $400.00 price objective on shares of Ralph Lauren in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $437.00 price objective on shares of Ralph Lauren in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. BTIG Research reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $450.00 price objective on shares of Ralph Lauren in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of Ralph Lauren from $400.00 to $450.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 16th.

Ralph Lauren Stock Down 1.3%

RL stock opened at $371.35 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $357.10 and a 200 day moving average price of $357.25. Ralph Lauren has a 12 month low of $258.13 and a 12 month high of $393.41. The company has a market cap of $22.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 2.13 and a quick ratio of 1.57.

Ralph Lauren (NYSE:RL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 21st. The textile maker reported $2.80 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.52 by $0.28. Ralph Lauren had a net margin of 11.60% and a return on equity of 38.17%. The firm had revenue of $1.98 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.85 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.27 EPS. Ralph Lauren’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.6% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Ralph Lauren will post 18.22 earnings per share for the current year.

Ralph Lauren Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 26th will be paid a dividend of $1.00 per share. 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. Ralph Lauren’s dividend payout ratio is currently 24.16%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ralph Lauren

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Blueline Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Ralph Lauren in the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Aventura Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Ralph Lauren in the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. JPL Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Ralph Lauren in the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. Rothschild Investment LLC grew its stake in Ralph Lauren by 61.3% in the 3rd quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 100 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Ralph Lauren in the 4th quarter valued at about $35,000. 67.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ralph Lauren Company Profile

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.