V.F. (NYSE:VFC) Shares Gap Down – Should You Sell?

Shares of V.F. Corporation (NYSE:VFC) gapped down before the market opened on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $21.23, but opened at $20.44. V.F. shares last traded at $19.6990, with a volume of 825,668 shares trading hands.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on VFC. Guggenheim started coverage on shares of V.F. in a research note on Tuesday, December 9th. They issued a “neutral” rating on the stock. KGI Securities set a $14.50 target price on shares of V.F. and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 29th. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on V.F. in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. They set a “hold” rating and a $18.00 price target on the stock. Citigroup upped their price objective on V.F. from $14.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of V.F. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, January 31st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $18.16.

V.F. Trading Down 7.6%

The business has a 50-day moving average of $19.53 and a 200-day moving average of $16.63. The stock has a market cap of $7.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.68, a PEG ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 1.65. The company has a quick ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.99.

V.F. (NYSE:VFC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The textile maker reported $0.58 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.43 by $0.15. V.F. had a return on equity of 19.08% and a net margin of 2.33%.The company had revenue of $2.88 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.81 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.62 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that V.F. Corporation will post 0.73 earnings per share for the current year.

V.F. Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 10th will be paid a $0.09 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 10th. This represents a $0.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.8%. V.F.’s dividend payout ratio is 65.45%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Juliana L. Chugg sold 6,678 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.30, for a total value of $142,241.40. Following the transaction, the director owned 40 shares in the company, valued at approximately $852. This represents a 99.40% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 1.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Optimize Financial Inc boosted its position in V.F. by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Optimize Financial Inc now owns 40,379 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $730,000 after acquiring an additional 580 shares during the last quarter. Bard Financial Services Inc. increased its holdings in V.F. by 3.1% in the third quarter. Bard Financial Services Inc. now owns 33,440 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $483,000 after purchasing an additional 1,000 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in V.F. by 59.7% in the third quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,748 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 1,027 shares during the period. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of V.F. by 5.7% during the 3rd quarter. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 21,903 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $316,000 after buying an additional 1,172 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its stake in V.F. by 50.1% in the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 7,465 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $108,000 after purchasing an additional 2,490 shares in the last quarter. 86.84% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About V.F.

VF Corporation, commonly branded as VF, is a global apparel and footwear company that develops, markets and distributes a diverse portfolio of consumer brands. Its offerings span outdoor and action sports apparel, footwear and accessories under marquee names such as The North Face, Vans, Timberland, Dickies, JanSport and Smartwool. Through a “house of brands” strategy, VF leverages the unique heritage and design expertise of each label to serve distinct lifestyle and performance segments.

Founded in 1899 in Pennsylvania as the Reading Glove and Mitten Manufacturing Company, VF evolved through a series of acquisitions and strategic expansions to become a leading player in the global apparel industry.