Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI) Shares Purchased by Alberta Investment Management Corp

Alberta Investment Management Corp increased its stake in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI - Free Report) by 22.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 132,942 shares of the blue-jean maker's stock after purchasing an additional 24,536 shares during the period. Alberta Investment Management Corp's holdings in Levi Strauss & Co. were worth $2,300,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Ceredex Value Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Levi Strauss & Co. during the 3rd quarter worth $10,817,000. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in Levi Strauss & Co. during the third quarter worth about $27,000. Jensen Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in Levi Strauss & Co. by 36.1% during the 3rd quarter. Jensen Investment Management Inc. now owns 200,970 shares of the blue-jean maker's stock valued at $4,381,000 after acquiring an additional 53,340 shares in the last quarter. Versor Investments LP raised its holdings in Levi Strauss & Co. by 155.6% in the 3rd quarter. Versor Investments LP now owns 75,600 shares of the blue-jean maker's stock valued at $1,648,000 after acquiring an additional 46,023 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GSA Capital Partners LLP lifted its stake in Levi Strauss & Co. by 81.6% in the 3rd quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP now owns 117,449 shares of the blue-jean maker's stock worth $2,560,000 after purchasing an additional 52,760 shares in the last quarter. 69.14% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently commented on LEVI shares. Telsey Advisory Group cut their price target on Levi Strauss & Co. from $26.00 to $23.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Citigroup cut their target price on Levi Strauss & Co. from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Levi Strauss & Co. from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Levi Strauss & Co. from $20.00 to $17.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Barclays decreased their target price on shares of Levi Strauss & Co. from $24.00 to $22.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Levi Strauss & Co. currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $21.27.

Levi Strauss & Co. Trading Down 1.4 %

Shares of Levi Strauss & Co. stock traded down $0.26 on Friday, reaching $18.41. The company had a trading volume of 1,586,205 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,094,194. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 1.42. The firm has a market cap of $7.29 billion, a PE ratio of 35.41, a PEG ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 1.17. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $17.84 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $18.22. Levi Strauss & Co. has a 52-week low of $15.62 and a 52-week high of $24.34.

Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The blue-jean maker reported $0.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.48 by $0.02. Levi Strauss & Co. had a return on equity of 25.88% and a net margin of 3.32%. Sell-side analysts predict that Levi Strauss & Co. will post 1.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Levi Strauss & Co. Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.13 per share. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.82%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 12th. Levi Strauss & Co.'s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 100.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Levi Strauss & Co.

In other Levi Strauss & Co. news, Director David A. Friedman sold 4,166 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.44, for a total transaction of $76,821.04. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 100,012 shares in the company, valued at $1,844,221.28. This represents a 4.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Insiders sold a total of 16,664 shares of company stock valued at $301,785 in the last three months. 3.14% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About Levi Strauss & Co.

Levi Strauss & Co engages in the design, marketing, and sale of apparel products. The company offers jeans, casual and dress pants, tops, shorts, skirts, jackets, footwear, and related accessories. It operates through the following geographical segments: Americas, Europe, and Asia. The company was founded by Levi Strauss in 1853 and is headquartered in San Francisco, CA.