Ceredex Value Advisors LLC Buys New Holdings in Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI)

Ceredex Value Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI - Free Report) in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 496,200 shares of the blue-jean maker's stock, valued at approximately $10,817,000. Ceredex Value Advisors LLC owned about 0.12% of Levi Strauss & Co. at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in LEVI. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its stake in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. by 230.0% during the 1st quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 56,934 shares of the blue-jean maker's stock worth $1,138,000 after acquiring an additional 39,683 shares during the last quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP boosted its stake in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. by 96.3% during the first quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP now owns 69,999 shares of the blue-jean maker's stock valued at $1,399,000 after purchasing an additional 34,347 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. by 2.0% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 8,555,997 shares of the blue-jean maker's stock valued at $171,034,000 after purchasing an additional 164,612 shares during the period. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. by 69.2% in the first quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 18,965 shares of the blue-jean maker's stock worth $379,000 after purchasing an additional 7,757 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its stake in Levi Strauss & Co. by 31.6% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 17,502 shares of the blue-jean maker's stock worth $350,000 after buying an additional 4,202 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 69.14% of the company's stock.

Levi Strauss & Co. Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE LEVI traded up $0.10 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $17.19. 2,008,856 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,259,756. Levi Strauss & Co. has a 1 year low of $13.75 and a 1 year high of $24.34. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $19.22 and a 200 day moving average of $20.17. The stock has a market cap of $6.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.24, a P/E/G ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54.

Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 2nd. The blue-jean maker reported $0.33 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.31 by $0.02. Levi Strauss & Co. had a net margin of 2.52% and a return on equity of 24.43%. The business had revenue of $1.52 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.55 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.28 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up .4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Levi Strauss & Co. will post 1.23 earnings per share for the current year.

Levi Strauss & Co. Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 14th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 29th will be issued a $0.13 dividend. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.03%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, October 29th. Levi Strauss & Co.'s dividend payout ratio is currently 136.85%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

LEVI has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Levi Strauss & Co. from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. Telsey Advisory Group restated an "outperform" rating and set a $26.00 price objective on shares of Levi Strauss & Co. in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. TD Cowen decreased their target price on Levi Strauss & Co. from $25.00 to $23.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on Levi Strauss & Co. from $28.00 to $25.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $22.75.

Insider Transactions at Levi Strauss & Co.

In other news, Director David A. Friedman sold 4,166 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.15, for a total value of $79,778.90. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 154,178 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,952,508.70. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, Director David A. Friedman sold 4,166 shares of Levi Strauss & Co. stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.15, for a total value of $79,778.90. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 154,178 shares in the company, valued at $2,952,508.70. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director David A. Friedman sold 25,002 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.00, for a total transaction of $500,040.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 229,176 shares in the company, valued at $4,583,520. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 3.14% of the company's stock.

Levi Strauss & Co. Profile

Levi Strauss & Co designs, markets, and sells apparels and related accessories for men, women, and children worldwide. The company offers jeans, casual and dress pants, activewears, tops, shorts, skirts, dresses, jumpsuits, shirts, sweaters, jackets, footwear, and related accessories under the Levi's, Dockers, Signature by Levi Strauss & Co, Denizen, and Beyond Yoga brands.