David A. Friedman Sells 4,166 Shares of Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI) Stock

Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI) Director David A. Friedman sold 4,166 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.37, for a total value of $80,695.42. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 162,510 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,147,818.70. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link.

Levi Strauss & Co. Stock Performance

NYSE LEVI opened at $19.04 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $22.30 and a two-hundred day moving average of $19.41. The company has a market capitalization of $7.58 billion, a PE ratio of 54.40, a P/E/G ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 1.16. Levi Strauss & Co. has a 1 year low of $12.41 and a 1 year high of $24.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 1.42 and a quick ratio of 0.77.

Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, June 26th. The blue-jean maker reported $0.16 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.11 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $1.44 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.45 billion. Levi Strauss & Co. had a return on equity of 23.21% and a net margin of 2.34%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.04 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Levi Strauss & Co. will post 1.25 earnings per share for the current year.

Levi Strauss & Co. Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 20th. Investors of record on Friday, August 2nd will be paid a dividend of $0.13 per share. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.73%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 2nd. This is an increase from Levi Strauss & Co.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.12. Levi Strauss & Co.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 137.15%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have issued reports on LEVI. OTR Global began coverage on Levi Strauss & Co. in a research report on Friday, June 14th. They issued a “positive” rating on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Levi Strauss & Co. from $17.00 to $20.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $26.00 price target on shares of Levi Strauss & Co. in a research report on Thursday, June 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Levi Strauss & Co. from $21.00 to $20.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, June 27th. Finally, TD Cowen increased their price target on Levi Strauss & Co. from $23.00 to $26.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 18th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Levi Strauss & Co. presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $22.33.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LEVI. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in Levi Strauss & Co. during the 4th quarter worth approximately $215,000. Guyasuta Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Levi Strauss & Co. during the 4th quarter worth approximately $223,000. Isthmus Partners LLC purchased a new position in Levi Strauss & Co. during the 4th quarter worth approximately $270,000. BTC Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in Levi Strauss & Co. during the 1st quarter worth approximately $294,000. Finally, Strategic Advisors LLC grew its stake in Levi Strauss & Co. by 7.0% during the 4th quarter. Strategic Advisors LLC now owns 19,900 shares of the blue-jean maker’s stock worth $329,000 after buying an additional 1,300 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.14% of the company’s stock.

About Levi Strauss & Co.

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.