Ralph Lauren Co. (NYSE:RL) Shares Sold by New York Life Investment Management LLC

New York Life Investment Management LLC lessened its stake in Ralph Lauren Co. (NYSE:RL) by 3.8% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 9,468 shares of the textile maker’s stock after selling 369 shares during the period. New York Life Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Ralph Lauren were worth $2,187,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Huntington National Bank boosted its position in shares of Ralph Lauren by 86.6% during the third quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 222 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 103 shares during the period. True Wealth Design LLC lifted its stake in Ralph Lauren by 8,933.3% during the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 271 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $53,000 after acquiring an additional 268 shares in the last quarter. AM Squared Ltd purchased a new position in Ralph Lauren during the 3rd quarter valued at about $58,000. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its position in Ralph Lauren by 333.3% in the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 351 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $81,000 after acquiring an additional 270 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Ralph Lauren during the third quarter worth about $86,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.91% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Ralph Lauren from $225.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Cowen restated a “buy” rating on shares of Ralph Lauren in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. UBS Group increased their price objective on Ralph Lauren from $332.00 to $348.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $265.00 target price on shares of Ralph Lauren in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Ralph Lauren from $285.00 to $342.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $284.15.

Ralph Lauren Stock Performance

Shares of RL opened at $271.11 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $16.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 1.49. Ralph Lauren Co. has a 52-week low of $155.96 and a 52-week high of $289.33. The company has a quick ratio of 1.31, a current ratio of 1.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $253.49 and a 200 day moving average price of $218.25.

Ralph Lauren (NYSE:RL) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The textile maker reported $4.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.46 by $0.36. Ralph Lauren had a net margin of 10.14% and a return on equity of 30.88%. Research analysts predict that Ralph Lauren Co. will post 12.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ralph Lauren Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 27th were given a dividend of $0.825 per share. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.22%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 27th. Ralph Lauren’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 30.11%.

About Ralph Lauren

Ralph Lauren Corporation designs, markets, and distributes lifestyle products in North America, Europe, Asia, and internationally. The company offers apparel, including a range of men’s, women’s, and children’s clothing; footwear and accessories, which comprise casual shoes, dress shoes, boots, sneakers, sandals, eyewear, watches, fashion and fine jewelry, scarves, hats, gloves, and umbrellas, as well as leather goods, such as handbags, luggage, small leather goods, and belts; home products consisting of bed and bath lines, furniture, fabric and wallcoverings, floor coverings, lighting, tabletop, kitchen linens, floor coverings, dining, decorative accessories, and giftware; and fragrances.