Ralph Lauren Co. (NYSE:RL) Position Increased by Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd.

Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in Ralph Lauren Co. (NYSE:RL) by 70.3% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 7,455 shares of the textile maker’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,077 shares during the period. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Ralph Lauren were worth $1,722,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its stake in Ralph Lauren by 1.6% during the 3rd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 32,465 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $6,294,000 after buying an additional 510 shares during the last quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ralph Lauren during the third quarter valued at $331,000. Public Sector Pension Investment Board increased its holdings in shares of Ralph Lauren by 4.5% in the 3rd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 6,949 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $1,347,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares during the period. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. lifted its position in Ralph Lauren by 66.1% in the 3rd quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 32,666 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $6,333,000 after purchasing an additional 12,995 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Captrust Financial Advisors boosted its stake in Ralph Lauren by 46.3% during the 3rd quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 3,366 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $653,000 after purchasing an additional 1,066 shares during the period. 67.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of Ralph Lauren from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the company from $280.00 to $286.00 in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. TD Cowen lifted their target price on Ralph Lauren from $258.00 to $268.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Ralph Lauren from $225.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Ralph Lauren in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Ralph Lauren from $285.00 to $342.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $284.62.

Ralph Lauren Trading Up 3.2 %

Shares of NYSE RL opened at $236.25 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.31, a current ratio of 1.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. Ralph Lauren Co. has a 12 month low of $155.96 and a 12 month high of $289.33. The company has a market cap of $14.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.56, a P/E/G ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 1.50. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $249.94 and a 200-day simple moving average of $227.24.

Ralph Lauren (NYSE:RL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The textile maker reported $4.82 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.46 by $0.36. Ralph Lauren had a net margin of 10.14% and a return on equity of 30.88%. Sell-side analysts predict that Ralph Lauren Co. will post 12.01 EPS for the current year.

Ralph Lauren Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 11th. Investors of record on Friday, March 28th will be given a dividend of $0.825 per share. This represents a $3.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.40%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 28th. Ralph Lauren’s payout ratio is 30.11%.

Ralph Lauren Profile

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