Ralph Lauren (NYSE:RL) Hits New 52-Week High – Time to Buy?

Ralph Lauren Co. (NYSE:RL) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $241.43 and last traded at $241.12, with a volume of 41909 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $234.49.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Barclays upped their target price on Ralph Lauren from $200.00 to $257.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Raymond James upped their target price on Ralph Lauren from $215.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Cfra set a $171.00 target price on Ralph Lauren in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Ralph Lauren from $195.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, StockNews.com raised Ralph Lauren from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 18th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Ralph Lauren has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $226.27.

Ralph Lauren Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $15.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.11, a PEG ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.49. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $221.89 and a 200-day simple moving average of $194.25. The company has a quick ratio of 1.18, a current ratio of 1.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40.

Ralph Lauren (NYSE:RL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The textile maker reported $2.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.43 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $1.73 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.68 billion. Ralph Lauren had a return on equity of 29.44% and a net margin of 10.15%. The business’s revenue was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.10 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Ralph Lauren Co. will post 11.71 EPS for the current year.

Ralph Lauren Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 10th. Investors of record on Friday, December 27th will be given a $0.825 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 27th. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.36%. Ralph Lauren’s payout ratio is 31.46%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ralph Lauren

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of RL. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Ralph Lauren by 2.8% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 492,787 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $95,537,000 after purchasing an additional 13,640 shares during the period. Bridgewater Associates LP lifted its stake in Ralph Lauren by 145.8% in the 3rd quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP now owns 59,927 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $11,618,000 after acquiring an additional 35,550 shares in the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund bought a new stake in Ralph Lauren in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $1,819,000. Quest Partners LLC lifted its stake in Ralph Lauren by 210.1% in the 3rd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 6,167 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $1,196,000 after acquiring an additional 4,178 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cypress Capital Group lifted its stake in Ralph Lauren by 83.6% in the 3rd quarter. Cypress Capital Group now owns 6,653 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $1,290,000 after acquiring an additional 3,029 shares in the last quarter. 67.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ralph Lauren Company 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.