Intech Investment Management LLC Grows Stock Holdings in Kontoor Brands, Inc. (NYSE:KTB)

Intech Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of Kontoor Brands, Inc. (NYSE:KTB) by 222.2% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 13,038 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 8,991 shares during the quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Kontoor Brands were worth $1,066,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of KTB. Quest Partners LLC bought a new stake in Kontoor Brands in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Kontoor Brands in the 3rd quarter valued at $30,000. Kennebec Savings Bank bought a new position in shares of Kontoor Brands during the 3rd quarter valued at $32,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its position in Kontoor Brands by 242.5% in the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 387 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 274 shares during the period. Finally, Sound Income Strategies LLC purchased a new stake in Kontoor Brands during the third quarter valued at about $48,000. 93.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Kontoor Brands Stock Performance

NYSE:KTB opened at $90.72 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.42, a current ratio of 2.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.09. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $83.44 and its 200 day simple moving average is $74.83. The stock has a market cap of $5.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 1.19. Kontoor Brands, Inc. has a twelve month low of $52.95 and a twelve month high of $94.41.

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

Kontoor Brands Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 19th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 9th will be given a $0.52 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 9th. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.29%. This is a positive change from Kontoor Brands’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. Kontoor Brands’s dividend payout ratio is currently 46.85%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Thomas L. Doerr, Jr. sold 9,039 shares of Kontoor Brands stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.71, for a total transaction of $729,537.69. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 18,179 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,467,227.09. This trade represents a 33.21 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Scott H. Baxter sold 119,160 shares of the company’s 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 331,916 shares in the company, valued at approximately $27,748,177.60. This trade represents a 26.42 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

Kontoor Brands Profile

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.