Bank of Montreal Can Raises Stock Position in Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI)

Bank of Montreal Can grew its position in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI - Free Report) by 148.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 40,960 shares of the blue-jean maker's stock after acquiring an additional 24,466 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can's holdings in Levi Strauss & Co. were worth $709,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. during the 4th quarter valued at about $39,000. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Levi Strauss & Co. during the fourth quarter valued at $82,000. Matrix Trust Co boosted its holdings in Levi Strauss & Co. by 678.9% in the fourth quarter. Matrix Trust Co now owns 5,507 shares of the blue-jean maker's stock worth $95,000 after acquiring an additional 4,800 shares in the last quarter. R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. in the fourth quarter worth $105,000. Finally, Manchester Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. in the fourth quarter worth $115,000. 69.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Levi Strauss & Co. Stock Performance

LEVI stock traded up $0.24 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $15.71. The stock had a trading volume of 2,302,149 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,154,747. The firm has a market cap of $6.22 billion, a PE ratio of 30.21, a PEG ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a current ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. The stock's 50 day moving average is $16.05 and its two-hundred day moving average is $17.11. Levi Strauss & Co. has a 52 week low of $12.17 and a 52 week high of $24.34.

Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 7th. The blue-jean maker reported $0.38 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.28 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $1.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.54 billion. Levi Strauss & Co. had a net margin of 3.32% and a return on equity of 25.88%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 3.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.26 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Levi Strauss & Co. will post 1.27 earnings per share for the current year.

Levi Strauss & Co. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 24th will be paid a $0.13 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 24th. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.31%. Levi Strauss & Co.'s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 58.43%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on Levi Strauss & Co. from $25.00 to $20.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Levi Strauss & Co. from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $19.00 to $17.00 in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Telsey Advisory Group cut their price target on shares of Levi Strauss & Co. from $23.00 to $19.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of Levi Strauss & Co. from $19.00 to $14.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 7th. Finally, UBS Group cut their target price on Levi Strauss & Co. from $26.00 to $25.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $19.18.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Levi Strauss & Co. news, Director David A. Friedman sold 4,166 shares of the firm's 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 owns 100,012 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,844,221.28. This trade represents a 4.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 1.25% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Levi Strauss & Co. Profile

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.