Ralph Lauren (NYSE:RL) Raised to Overweight at Wells Fargo & Company

Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Ralph Lauren (NYSE:RL - Free Report) from an equal weight rating to an overweight rating in a research note published on Tuesday morning, Marketbeat reports. The firm currently has $240.00 target price on the textile maker's stock, down from their previous target price of $275.00.

Several other equities analysts have also recently weighed in on RL. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded Ralph Lauren from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price objective for the company from $280.00 to $286.00 in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. Argus raised shares of Ralph Lauren from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $250.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, December 31st. TD Cowen boosted their price target on shares of Ralph Lauren from $258.00 to $268.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Needham & Company LLC started coverage on shares of Ralph Lauren in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $310.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price 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. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Ralph Lauren has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $277.43.

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Ralph Lauren Stock Up 1.7 %

Shares of NYSE:RL traded up $3.22 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $197.89. 975,330 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 847,618. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 1.76 and a quick ratio of 1.31. Ralph Lauren has a 12 month low of $155.96 and a 12 month high of $289.33. The company has a market cap of $12.22 billion, a PE ratio of 18.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 1.38. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $239.60 and a 200-day moving average price of $227.56.

Ralph Lauren (NYSE:RL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The textile maker reported $4.82 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.46 by $0.36. Ralph Lauren had a return on equity of 30.88% and a net margin of 10.14%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Ralph Lauren will post 12.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ralph Lauren Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 11th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 28th were given a dividend of $0.825 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 28th. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.67%. Ralph Lauren's dividend payout ratio is presently 30.11%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Captrust Financial Advisors grew its stake in Ralph Lauren by 46.3% during the third quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 3,366 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $653,000 after acquiring an additional 1,066 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its stake in shares of Ralph Lauren by 5.4% during the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 19,522 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $3,784,000 after acquiring an additional 1,000 shares in the last quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC lifted its stake in Ralph Lauren by 3.5% in the third quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 3,706 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $719,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Ralph Lauren by 62.0% in the 3rd quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 3,809 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $738,000 after acquiring an additional 1,458 shares during the last quarter. Finally, National Bank of Canada FI boosted its stake in shares of Ralph Lauren by 53.3% during the third quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 20,325 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $3,940,000 after purchasing an additional 7,067 shares during the period. 67.91% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Ralph Lauren

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.