Principal Financial Group Inc. Reduces Stock Holdings in Kontoor Brands, Inc. (NYSE:KTB)

Principal Financial Group Inc. cut its position in Kontoor Brands, Inc. (NYSE:KTB - Free Report) by 5.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 253,577 shares of the company's stock after selling 14,787 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.45% of Kontoor Brands worth $20,738,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of Kontoor Brands by 44.3% in the first quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 24,311 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,465,000 after purchasing an additional 7,466 shares during the period. Magnetar Financial LLC purchased a new position in Kontoor Brands in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $1,508,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in Kontoor Brands by 53.5% during the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 700 shares of the company's stock valued at $57,000 after acquiring an additional 244 shares during the period. Sei Investments Co. lifted its position in shares of Kontoor Brands by 78.9% during the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 52,658 shares of the company's stock worth $3,483,000 after acquiring an additional 23,223 shares in the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Kontoor Brands by 48.7% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 36,081 shares of the company's stock worth $2,387,000 after acquiring an additional 11,810 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.06% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Thomas L. Doerr, Jr. sold 9,039 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.71, for a total transaction of $729,537.69. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 18,179 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,467,227.09. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Kontoor Brands news, CEO Scott H. Baxter sold 119,160 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.60, for a total value of $9,961,776.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 331,916 shares in the company, valued at approximately $27,748,177.60. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Thomas L. Doerr, Jr. sold 9,039 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owns 18,179 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,467,227.09. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

Kontoor Brands Price Performance

NYSE:KTB traded up $0.43 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $90.73. The company had a trading volume of 130,734 shares, compared to its average volume of 484,788. The company has a market capitalization of $5.00 billion, a PE ratio of 20.26, a P/E/G ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a quick ratio of 1.42, a current ratio of 2.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.09. Kontoor Brands, Inc. has a 52-week low of $51.12 and a 52-week high of $92.48. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $80.10 and its 200-day moving average price is $73.10.

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

Kontoor Brands Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 19th. Investors of record on Monday, December 9th will be given a $0.52 dividend. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.29%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 9th. This is a boost from Kontoor Brands's previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. Kontoor Brands's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 46.85%.

About Kontoor Brands

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.