Short Interest in Ralph Lauren Co. (NYSE:RL) Rises By 26.6%

Ralph Lauren Co. (NYSE:RL) was the target of a significant growth in short interest during the month of March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 2,430,000 shares, a growth of 26.6% from the February 28th total of 1,920,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 858,600 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.8 days. Approximately 6.3% of the company’s shares are sold short.

Ralph Lauren Stock Up 3.2 %

Shares of NYSE RL traded up $7.33 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $236.25. 1,002,111 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 817,775. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $249.94 and a 200-day moving average price of $227.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 1.31 and a current ratio of 1.76. The company has a market cap of $14.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.56, a PEG ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 1.50. Ralph Lauren has a 52 week low of $155.96 and a 52 week high of $289.33.

Ralph Lauren (NYSE:RL) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The textile maker reported $4.82 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 anticipate that Ralph Lauren will post 12.01 EPS for the current year.

Ralph Lauren Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 11th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 28th will be issued a dividend of $0.825 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 28th. This represents a $3.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.40%. Ralph Lauren’s payout ratio is 30.11%.

Institutional Trading of Ralph Lauren

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Mather Group LLC. raised its stake in Ralph Lauren by 4.1% during the fourth quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 1,182 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $273,000 after buying an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. M&T Bank Corp raised its position in shares of Ralph Lauren by 3.4% in the 3rd quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 1,657 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $321,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB boosted its stake in Ralph Lauren by 93.7% in the 1st quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 122 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. grew its position in Ralph Lauren by 6.6% during the 4th quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 1,005 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $231,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares during the last quarter. Finally, TD Private Client Wealth LLC increased its stake in Ralph Lauren by 19.6% during the 4th quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 446 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $103,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. 67.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

RL has been the topic of several analyst reports. Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Ralph Lauren in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Guggenheim lifted their price target on Ralph Lauren from $285.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on Ralph Lauren from $285.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Ralph Lauren from $332.00 to $348.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, BNP Paribas raised shares of Ralph Lauren to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Ralph Lauren presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $284.62.

Ralph Lauren Company Profile

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.