Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI) Director David A. Friedman Sells 4,166 Shares

Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI) Director David A. Friedman sold 4,166 shares of Levi Strauss & Co. stock in a transaction on Monday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.37, for a total transaction of $80,695.42. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 162,510 shares in the company, valued at $3,147,818.70. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink.

Levi Strauss & Co. Stock Performance

LEVI opened at $19.04 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $7.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 54.40, a P/E/G ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 1.42 and a quick ratio of 0.77. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $22.34 and its 200 day simple moving average is $19.41. Levi Strauss & Co. has a 1-year low of $12.41 and a 1-year high of $24.34.

Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, June 26th. The blue-jean maker reported $0.16 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.11 by $0.05. Levi Strauss & Co. had a return on equity of 23.21% and a net margin of 2.34%. The company had revenue of $1.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.45 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.04 earnings per share. Levi Strauss & Co.’s quarterly revenue was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Levi Strauss & Co. will post 1.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Levi Strauss & Co. Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 20th. Investors of record on Friday, August 2nd will be paid a $0.13 dividend. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.73%. This is a boost from Levi Strauss & Co.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.12. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 2nd. Levi Strauss & Co.’s dividend payout ratio is presently 137.15%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Levi Strauss & Co.

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $215,000. Guyasuta Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Levi Strauss & Co. during the 4th quarter valued at $223,000. BTC Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in Levi Strauss & Co. during the first quarter worth $294,000. Isthmus Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. in the fourth quarter worth $270,000. Finally, Washington Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. in the first quarter worth $330,000. 69.14% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently weighed in on LEVI shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Levi Strauss & Co. from $21.00 to $20.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, June 27th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Levi Strauss & Co. from $17.00 to $20.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 5th. OTR Global began coverage on Levi Strauss & Co. in a research report on Friday, June 14th. They set a “positive” rating on the stock. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $26.00 price target on shares of Levi Strauss & Co. in a report on Thursday, June 27th. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their price target on Levi Strauss & Co. from $23.00 to $26.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 18th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $22.33.

Levi Strauss & Co. Company 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.