Empowered Funds LLC Raises Stake in Ralph Lauren Co. (NYSE:RL)

Empowered Funds LLC increased its holdings in Ralph Lauren Co. (NYSE:RL - Free Report) by 241.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 12,220 shares of the textile maker's stock after acquiring an additional 8,644 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC's holdings in Ralph Lauren were worth $2,823,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vest Financial LLC grew its position in Ralph Lauren by 29.8% in the 4th quarter. Vest Financial LLC now owns 10,560 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $2,439,000 after purchasing an additional 2,422 shares in the last quarter. Lecap Asset Management Ltd. bought a new stake in Ralph Lauren in the 4th quarter worth about $1,444,000. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt grew its position in Ralph Lauren by 103.5% in the 4th quarter. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt now owns 11,600 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $2,688,000 after purchasing an additional 5,900 shares in the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. grew its position in Ralph Lauren by 7.8% in the 4th quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 1,582 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $365,000 after purchasing an additional 115 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Choreo LLC grew its position in Ralph Lauren by 15.9% in the 4th quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 1,944 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $451,000 after purchasing an additional 267 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.91% of the company's stock.

Ralph Lauren Stock Performance

RL traded up $4.40 on Monday, hitting $282.93. The company's stock had a trading volume of 731,038 shares, compared to its average volume of 759,137. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $244.36 and its 200-day simple moving average is $210.88. The firm has a market cap of $17.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 1.49. Ralph Lauren Co. has a 12 month low of $155.96 and a 12 month high of $289.33. The company has a quick ratio of 1.18, a current ratio of 1.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39.

Ralph Lauren (NYSE:RL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The textile maker reported $4.82 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.46 by $0.36. Ralph Lauren had a net margin of 10.14% and a return on equity of 30.88%. Analysts forecast that Ralph Lauren Co. will post 11.73 EPS for the current year.

Ralph Lauren Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 27th were paid a $0.825 dividend. This represents a $3.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.17%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 27th. Ralph Lauren's dividend payout ratio is presently 30.11%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on shares of Ralph Lauren from $285.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Ralph Lauren from $225.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $265.00 target price on shares of Ralph Lauren in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of Ralph Lauren from $258.00 to $268.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Argus raised shares of Ralph Lauren from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $250.00 target price for the company in a research report on Tuesday, December 31st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $279.33.

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.