Ralph Lauren Co. (NYSE:RL) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Ralph Lauren Co. (NYSE:RL) has earned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the eleven brokerages that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $184.80.

Several brokerages have commented on RL. Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $200.00 price target on shares of Ralph Lauren in a research report on Friday, May 24th. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Ralph Lauren from $195.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Ralph Lauren from $244.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 16th. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $195.00 price objective on shares of Ralph Lauren in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, Argus restated a “hold” rating on shares of Ralph Lauren in a report on Tuesday, July 2nd.

Ralph Lauren Price Performance

NYSE RL opened at $172.70 on Wednesday. Ralph Lauren has a 12 month low of $108.60 and a 12 month high of $192.03. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.70 billion, a PE ratio of 17.77, a P/E/G ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.49. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $169.36 and its 200 day simple moving average is $173.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 2.19 and a quick ratio of 1.53.

Ralph Lauren (NYSE:RL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The textile maker reported $2.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.45 by $0.25. The company had revenue of $1.51 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.49 billion. Ralph Lauren had a return on equity of 28.79% and a net margin of 10.27%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.34 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Ralph Lauren will post 11.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ralph Lauren

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Ralph Lauren by 4.3% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,908,575 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $921,634,000 after acquiring an additional 203,495 shares in the last quarter. Boston Partners lifted its holdings in shares of Ralph Lauren by 3.4% during the 1st quarter. Boston Partners now owns 1,255,482 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $235,662,000 after buying an additional 41,482 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Ralph Lauren by 12,493.8% during the 2nd quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 1,002,344 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $175,470,000 after buying an additional 994,385 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Ralph Lauren by 158.1% in the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 863,336 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $149,478,000 after buying an additional 528,778 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Acadian Asset Management LLC raised its position in Ralph Lauren by 42.2% during the second quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 638,502 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $111,760,000 after acquiring an additional 189,600 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.91% of the company’s stock.

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, lighting, tabletop, kitchen linens, floor coverings, and giftware; and fragrances.