Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI) Given Average Rating of "Moderate Buy" by Analysts

Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI - Get Free Report) has received a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the twelve ratings firms that are covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $19.18.

LEVI has been the topic of several recent research reports. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Levi Strauss & Co. from $17.00 to $16.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Levi Strauss & Co. from $20.00 to $17.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on shares of Levi Strauss & Co. from $25.00 to $20.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Guggenheim upped their price objective on shares of Levi Strauss & Co. from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of Levi Strauss & Co. from $26.00 to $25.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 3rd.

Insider Buying and Selling at Levi Strauss & Co.

In other Levi Strauss & Co. news, Director David A. Friedman sold 4,166 shares of Levi Strauss & Co. 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 transaction, the director now directly owns 100,012 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,844,221.28. The trade was a 4.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 1.25% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Levi Strauss & Co.

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in Levi Strauss & Co. by 19.2% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 946,998 shares of the blue-jean maker's stock worth $16,383,000 after acquiring an additional 152,590 shares in the last quarter. Entropy Technologies LP purchased a new stake in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $511,000. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. during the fourth quarter worth $1,415,000. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. by 15.8% in the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,608,253 shares of the blue-jean maker's stock valued at $27,823,000 after purchasing an additional 219,546 shares during the period. Finally, Savoir Faire Capital Management L.P. grew its holdings in Levi Strauss & Co. by 55.6% during the 4th quarter. Savoir Faire Capital Management L.P. now owns 188,714 shares of the blue-jean maker's stock valued at $3,265,000 after purchasing an additional 67,401 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.14% of the company's stock.

Levi Strauss & Co. Trading Up 3.4 %

NYSE:LEVI opened at $15.53 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $6.15 billion, a PE ratio of 29.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.07. Levi Strauss & Co. has a 52-week low of $12.17 and a 52-week high of $24.34. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $16.05 and a 200-day simple moving average of $17.11. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50.

Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 7th. The blue-jean maker reported $0.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.28 by $0.10. Levi Strauss & Co. had a net margin of 3.32% and a return on equity of 25.88%. The company had revenue of $1.53 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.54 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.26 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect 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, May 9th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 24th will be issued a $0.13 dividend. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.35%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 24th. Levi Strauss & Co.'s payout ratio is currently 58.43%.

Levi Strauss & Co. Company 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.

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