Kontoor Brands, Inc. (NYSE:KTB) Short Interest Down 5.8% in December

Kontoor Brands, Inc. (NYSE:KTB - Get Free Report) saw a large decline in short interest during the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 3,260,000 shares, a decline of 5.8% from the December 15th total of 3,460,000 shares. Currently, 6.0% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 427,400 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 7.6 days.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

KTB has been the subject of several research reports. Stifel Nicolaus lowered Kontoor Brands from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and increased their price objective for the company from $89.00 to $93.00 in a report on Friday, November 1st. Guggenheim raised their price objective 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. 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. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Kontoor Brands from $83.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, UBS Group increased their price objective on Kontoor Brands from $103.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $95.00.

Kontoor Brands Price Performance

Shares of KTB traded up $1.26 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $86.10. The stock had a trading volume of 266,469 shares, compared to its average volume of 353,665. The company has a market capitalization of $4.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.04 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a current ratio of 2.50, a quick ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.09. Kontoor Brands has a 12-month low of $52.95 and a 12-month high of $94.82. The company's 50-day moving average is $88.47 and its 200 day moving average is $79.54.

Kontoor Brands (NYSE:KTB - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.26 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $670.19 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.22 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Kontoor Brands will post 4.82 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kontoor Brands Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 19th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 9th were given a dividend of $0.52 per share. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.42%. This is a positive change from Kontoor Brands's previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 9th. Kontoor Brands's dividend payout ratio is presently 46.85%.

Insider Activity at Kontoor Brands

In other Kontoor Brands news, EVP Thomas L. Doerr, Jr. sold 9,039 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.71, for a total value of $729,537.69. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 18,179 shares in the company, valued at $1,467,227.09. The trade was a 33.21 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Scott H. Baxter sold 119,160 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.60, for a total transaction of $9,961,776.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 331,916 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $27,748,177.60. The trade was a 26.42 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Kontoor Brands

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Quest Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Kontoor Brands during the 2nd quarter valued at $27,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Kontoor Brands during the third quarter worth about $30,000. Kennebec Savings Bank bought a new stake in shares of Kontoor Brands in the third quarter worth about $32,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Kontoor Brands by 242.5% during the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 387 shares of the company's stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 274 shares during the period. Finally, Fortitude Family Office LLC raised its position in Kontoor Brands by 407.3% during the 4th quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 416 shares of the company's stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 334 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.06% of the company's stock.

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.