Traders Buy Large Volume of V.F. Put Options (NYSE:VFC)

V.F. Co. (NYSE:VFC) saw unusually large options trading on Wednesday. Stock investors acquired 22,809 put options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 13% compared to the average volume of 20,237 put options.

V.F. Stock Performance

NYSE VFC opened at $17.85 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.84. The business’s 50 day moving average is $16.05 and its two-hundred day moving average is $14.62. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -7.14, a PEG ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 1.53. V.F. has a 12-month low of $11.00 and a 12-month high of $20.69.

V.F. (NYSE:VFC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The textile maker reported ($0.33) earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.37) by $0.04. The business had revenue of $1.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.85 billion. V.F. had a negative net margin of 11.39% and a positive return on equity of 11.75%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 8.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted ($0.15) EPS. Research analysts expect that V.F. will post 0.79 EPS for the current year.

V.F. Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 18th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 10th will be paid a $0.09 dividend. This represents a $0.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.02%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 10th. V.F.’s payout ratio is currently -14.40%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Bracken Darrell purchased 75,200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 10th. The stock was bought at an average price of $13.26 per share, for a total transaction of $997,152.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider now directly owns 219,972 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,916,828.72. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other V.F. news, insider Bracken Darrell acquired 75,200 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 10th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $13.26 per share, with a total value of $997,152.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 219,972 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,916,828.72. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Richard Carucci acquired 15,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 22nd. The stock was acquired at an average price of $16.70 per share, for a total transaction of $250,500.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 230,178 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,843,972.60. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have purchased a total of 115,200 shares of company stock worth $1,592,152 in the last quarter. 0.70% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of V.F.

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of VFC. M&G Plc purchased a new position in V.F. during the first quarter worth $200,768,000. Norges Bank acquired a new position in V.F. in the 4th quarter valued at about $76,059,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in V.F. by 28.0% in the 2nd quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 11,822,885 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $159,609,000 after purchasing an additional 2,589,852 shares in the last quarter. Jackson Square Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of V.F. during the 4th quarter worth about $46,646,000. Finally, M&G Investment Management Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of V.F. by 19.4% during the fourth quarter. M&G Investment Management Ltd. now owns 12,413,169 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $235,850,000 after buying an additional 2,016,470 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.84% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently commented on VFC shares. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on shares of V.F. from $22.00 to $19.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 23rd. UBS Group upped their target price on V.F. from $12.00 to $17.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Argus raised V.F. to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 28th. Telsey Advisory Group increased their price objective on V.F. from $15.00 to $19.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, Citigroup raised shares of V.F. from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $11.00 to $20.00 in a report on Thursday, July 18th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have assigned a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $15.50.

V.F. Company Profile

V.F. Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the design, procurement, marketing, and distribution of branded lifestyle apparel, footwear, and accessories for men, women, and children in the Americas, Europe, and the Asia-Pacific. It operates through three segments: Outdoor, Active, and Work.