V.F. Corporation (NYSE:VFC) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” from Analysts

V.F. Corporation (NYSE:VFC) has been given a consensus recommendation of “Hold” by the twenty-one research firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average twelve-month price objective among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $18.5833.

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on VFC shares. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on V.F. from $20.00 to $18.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 21st. UBS Group cut their price objective on V.F. from $20.00 to $18.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 21st. Wall Street Zen raised V.F. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Sunday, March 22nd. Seaport Research Partners raised V.F. from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $24.00 price objective for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded V.F. from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a report on Thursday, June 4th.

Insider Activity at V.F.

In other V.F. news, Director Richard Carucci purchased 30,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 9th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $17.17 per share, for a total transaction of $515,100.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 336,043 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,769,858.31. The trade was a 9.80% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On V.F.

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VFC. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC raised its stake in V.F. by 43.4% in the 3rd quarter. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC now owns 4,938,084 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $71,257,000 after acquiring an additional 1,495,148 shares during the period. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in V.F. in the 1st quarter valued at $3,209,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its stake in V.F. by 14.0% in the 4th quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 659,773 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $11,930,000 after acquiring an additional 81,006 shares during the period. Fiduciary Alliance LLC raised its stake in V.F. by 10.3% in the 4th quarter. Fiduciary Alliance LLC now owns 647,496 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $11,707,000 after acquiring an additional 60,619 shares during the period. Finally, Entropy Technologies LP bought a new stake in V.F. in the 1st quarter valued at $815,000. Institutional investors own 86.84% of the company’s stock.

V.F. News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting V.F. this week:

• Positive Sentiment: One article noted that V.F. Corporation has been outperforming the broader market on a relative basis, which may help support a more constructive long-term view of the stock. VF (VFC) exceeds market returns: Some facts to consider
• Neutral Sentiment: There was unusual options activity in VFC, with a sharp spike in put buying. That often signals hedging or bearish speculation, but it does not by itself confirm a fundamental change in the company’s outlook.
• Negative Sentiment: Heavy put-option volume suggests some traders are positioning for downside, which can weigh on near-term investor sentiment.

V.F. Trading Down 5.6%

NYSE:VFC opened at $16.71 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $6.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 1.57. The company has a quick ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 1.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.90. V.F. has a twelve month low of $11.06 and a twelve month high of $22.27. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $18.01 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $18.45.

V.F. (NYSE:VFC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 20th. The textile maker reported ($0.30) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.02) by ($0.28). The company had revenue of $2.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.13 billion. V.F. had a net margin of 2.65% and a return on equity of 21.05%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted ($0.13) EPS. As a group, analysts expect that V.F. will post 1.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

V.F. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 18th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, June 10th will be issued a $0.09 dividend. This represents a $0.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 10th. V.F.’s dividend payout ratio is presently 56.25%.

V.F. Company Profile

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.