Marotta Asset Management Takes Position in Kontoor Brands, Inc. (NYSE:KTB)

Marotta Asset Management purchased a new position in shares of Kontoor Brands, Inc. (NYSE:KTB) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 2,411 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $205,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Kontoor Brands during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Kontoor Brands by 242.5% in the third 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 last quarter. Kennebec Savings Bank bought a new position in Kontoor Brands in the 3rd quarter valued at about $32,000. Quest Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Kontoor Brands during the second quarter worth approximately $27,000. Finally, Fortitude Family Office LLC boosted its position in shares of Kontoor Brands by 407.3% in the fourth quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 416 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 334 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 93.06% of the company’s stock.

Kontoor Brands Price Performance

Shares of Kontoor Brands stock traded down $0.40 during trading on Friday, reaching $87.58. 33,177 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 291,779. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.09, a quick ratio of 1.42 and a current ratio of 2.50. Kontoor Brands, Inc. has a 1-year low of $52.95 and a 1-year high of $94.82. The company has a market cap of $4.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.73, a PEG ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 1.20. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $88.57 and its 200 day moving average price is $78.56.

Kontoor Brands (NYSE:KTB) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.37 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.26 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $670.19 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $663.45 million. Kontoor Brands had a net margin of 9.72% and a return on equity of 73.99%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.22 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Kontoor Brands, Inc. will post 4.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Kontoor Brands Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 19th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 9th were paid a dividend of $0.52 per share. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.37%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 9th. This is a boost from Kontoor Brands’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. Kontoor Brands’s payout ratio is presently 46.85%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have weighed in on the stock. Guggenheim lifted their price objective on shares of Kontoor Brands from $80.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Kontoor Brands from $80.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus lowered Kontoor Brands from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $89.00 to $93.00 in a research note on Friday, November 1st. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Kontoor Brands from $103.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on Kontoor Brands from $83.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $95.00.

Insider Transactions at Kontoor Brands

In other Kontoor Brands news, CEO Scott H. Baxter sold 119,160 shares of Kontoor Brands stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly 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 sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Thomas L. Doerr, Jr. sold 9,039 shares of the company’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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 18,179 shares in the company, valued at $1,467,227.09. This trade represents a 33.21 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 2.60% 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.