Ralph Lauren (NYSE:RL) Shares Gap Down to $175.87

Shares of Ralph Lauren Co. (NYSE:RL - Get Free Report) gapped down before the market opened on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $175.87, but opened at $171.04. Ralph Lauren shares last traded at $172.73, with a volume of 49,244 shares trading hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

RL has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Ralph Lauren from $244.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 16th. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on Ralph Lauren in a report on Tuesday, April 30th. They set a "buy" rating and a $195.00 price objective on the stock. TD Cowen lifted their target price on Ralph Lauren from $192.00 to $197.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 9th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Ralph Lauren from $185.00 to $180.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 24th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $195.00 price objective on shares of Ralph Lauren in a research note on Thursday, May 23rd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Ralph Lauren currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $170.50.

Ralph Lauren Trading Down 0.4 %

The stock has a 50 day moving average of $174.26 and a 200 day moving average of $166.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 2.29 and a quick ratio of 1.68. The firm has a market cap of $10.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.09, a PEG ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 1.52.

Ralph Lauren (NYSE:RL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 23rd. The textile maker reported $1.71 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.65 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $1.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.57 billion. Ralph Lauren had a return on equity of 27.90% and a net margin of 9.75%. The company's revenue was up 1.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.90 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Ralph Lauren Co. will post 11.07 EPS for the current year.

Ralph Lauren Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 28th will be paid a $0.825 dividend. This is a boost from Ralph Lauren's previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 28th. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.88%. Ralph Lauren's dividend payout ratio is 30.86%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, COO Jane Nielsen sold 67,243 shares of Ralph Lauren stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $171.25, for a total value of $11,515,363.75. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 44,591 shares in the company, valued at $7,636,208.75. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 39.09% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ralph Lauren

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of RL. Boston Partners lifted its stake in Ralph Lauren by 67.2% in the fourth quarter. Boston Partners now owns 1,214,000 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $175,001,000 after acquiring an additional 487,882 shares during the period. Acadian Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Ralph Lauren by 15,903.6% in the 1st quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 448,902 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $84,266,000 after purchasing an additional 446,097 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC boosted its stake in shares of Ralph Lauren by 71.6% during the 4th quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 794,127 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $114,513,000 after purchasing an additional 331,413 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB bought a new position in Ralph Lauren in the first quarter worth about $61,022,000. Finally, Los Angeles Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Ralph Lauren by 10,207.7% in the first quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 325,208 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $61,061,000 after buying an additional 322,053 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.91% of the company's stock.

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, lighting, tabletop, kitchen linens, floor coverings, and giftware; and fragrances.