Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI) Shares Gap Down Following Analyst Downgrade

Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI) gapped down before the market opened on Thursday after TD Cowen lowered their price target on the stock from $25.00 to $23.00. The stock had previously closed at $21.06, but opened at $18.69. TD Cowen currently has a buy rating on the stock. Levi Strauss & Co. shares last traded at $19.15, with a volume of 3,405,866 shares.

Other analysts have also issued reports about the company. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $26.00 price objective on shares of Levi Strauss & Co. in a report on Thursday. OTR Global started coverage on shares of Levi Strauss & Co. in a research note on Friday, June 14th. They issued a “positive” rating for the company. Bank of America lifted their price objective on Levi Strauss & Co. from $19.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 27th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on Levi Strauss & Co. from $28.00 to $25.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Levi Strauss & Co. from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $22.75.

Insider Activity at Levi Strauss & Co.

In related news, Director David A. Friedman sold 25,002 shares of Levi Strauss & Co. stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.00, for a total transaction of $500,040.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 229,176 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,583,520. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, Director David A. Friedman sold 4,166 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.23, for a total transaction of $75,946.18. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 158,344 shares in the company, valued at $2,886,611.12. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director David A. Friedman sold 25,002 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.00, for a total transaction of $500,040.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 229,176 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,583,520. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 33,334 shares of company stock worth $655,765 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 3.14% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Levi Strauss & Co.

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in LEVI. Millennium Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. by 2,083.0% during the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,923,206 shares of the blue-jean maker’s stock worth $37,079,000 after acquiring an additional 1,835,107 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. by 2,070.8% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,431,518 shares of the blue-jean maker’s stock valued at $27,600,000 after purchasing an additional 1,365,574 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its stake in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. by 6,794.9% in the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 1,244,873 shares of the blue-jean maker’s stock valued at $24,001,000 after purchasing an additional 1,226,818 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors raised its holdings in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. by 17.8% during the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 6,625,378 shares of the blue-jean maker’s stock worth $109,584,000 after buying an additional 1,000,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP lifted its position in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. by 21.5% during the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 4,274,326 shares of the blue-jean maker’s stock worth $82,409,000 after buying an additional 756,926 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.14% of the company’s stock.

Levi Strauss & Co. Trading Up 2.0 %

The firm has a 50-day moving average of $19.15 and a two-hundred day moving average of $20.33. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 56.63, a P/E/G ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a current ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51.

Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 2nd. The blue-jean maker reported $0.33 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.31 by $0.02. Levi Strauss & Co. had a return on equity of 23.21% and a net margin of 2.34%. The firm had revenue of $1.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.55 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.28 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up .4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts anticipate that Levi Strauss & Co. will post 1.25 EPS for the current year.

Levi Strauss & Co. Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 14th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 29th will be given a dividend of $0.13 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 29th. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.62%. Levi Strauss & Co.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 148.57%.

Levi Strauss & Co. Company Profile

Levi Strauss & Co designs, markets, and sells apparels and related accessories for men, women, and children worldwide. The company offers jeans, casual and dress pants, activewears, tops, shorts, skirts, dresses, jumpsuits, shirts, sweaters, jackets, footwear, and related accessories under the Levi's, Dockers, Signature by Levi Strauss & Co, Denizen, and Beyond Yoga brands.