38,291 Shares in Kontoor Brands, Inc. (NYSE:KTB) Acquired by Eagle Asset Management Inc.

Eagle Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Kontoor Brands, Inc. (NYSE:KTB - Free Report) in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 38,291 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,448,000. Eagle Asset Management Inc. owned about 0.07% of Kontoor Brands as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of KTB. Arizona State Retirement System boosted its position in Kontoor Brands by 1.1% during the 2nd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 14,050 shares of the company's stock worth $929,000 after acquiring an additional 154 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its position in Kontoor Brands by 5.0% in the 2nd quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 3,544 shares of the company's stock valued at $234,000 after buying an additional 169 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. increased its stake in shares of Kontoor Brands by 3.6% during the second quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 4,979 shares of the company's stock valued at $329,000 after acquiring an additional 175 shares during the period. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System raised its stake in shares of Kontoor Brands by 0.8% in the 2nd quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 25,000 shares of the company's stock worth $1,654,000 after buying an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC raised its position in Kontoor Brands by 2.2% in the second quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 9,340 shares of the company's stock worth $616,000 after acquiring an additional 203 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.06% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Thomas L. Doerr, Jr. sold 9,039 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.71, for a total transaction of $729,537.69. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 18,179 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,467,227.09. This trade represents a 33.21 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Scott H. Baxter sold 119,160 shares of Kontoor Brands stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.60, for a total transaction of $9,961,776.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 331,916 shares of the company's stock, valued at $27,748,177.60. This trade represents a 26.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 2.50% of the company's stock.

Kontoor Brands Stock Down 1.8 %

Shares of Kontoor Brands stock traded down $1.71 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $92.05. The company's stock had a trading volume of 453,251 shares, compared to its average volume of 481,542. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.73, a PEG ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.19. Kontoor Brands, Inc. has a 1-year low of $52.82 and a 1-year high of $94.41. The company has a quick ratio of 1.42, a current ratio of 2.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.09. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $83.17 and a 200-day simple moving average of $74.72.

Kontoor Brands (NYSE:KTB - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.37 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.26 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $670.19 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $663.45 million. Kontoor Brands had a return on equity of 73.99% and a net margin of 9.72%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.22 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Kontoor Brands, Inc. will post 4.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Kontoor Brands Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 19th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 9th will be paid a $0.52 dividend. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.26%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 9th. This is a positive change from Kontoor Brands's previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. Kontoor Brands's dividend payout ratio is currently 45.05%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently weighed in on KTB shares. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Kontoor Brands from $103.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Stifel Nicolaus lowered Kontoor Brands from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $89.00 to $93.00 in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Barclays boosted their target price on Kontoor Brands from $83.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Guggenheim increased their price target on Kontoor Brands from $80.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Kontoor Brands from $80.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $95.00.

Kontoor Brands Company Profile

Kontoor Brands, Inc, a lifestyle apparel company, designs, produces, procures, markets, distributes, and licenses denim, apparel, footwear, and accessories, primarily under the Wrangler and Lee brands. The company operates through two segments: Wrangler and Lee. It licenses and sells apparel under the Rock & Republic brand name.