Magnetar Financial LLC Purchases Shares of 25,031 Kontoor Brands, Inc. (NYSE:KTB)

Magnetar Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Kontoor Brands, Inc. (NYSE:KTB) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 25,031 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,508,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of KTB. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in Kontoor Brands during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Principal Securities Inc. bought a new position in Kontoor Brands during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Oakworth Capital Inc. raised its position in Kontoor Brands by 157.8% during the 4th quarter. Oakworth Capital Inc. now owns 781 shares of the company’s stock valued at $49,000 after purchasing an additional 478 shares during the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new position in shares of Kontoor Brands during the 4th quarter worth approximately $81,000. Finally, CWM LLC grew its holdings in shares of Kontoor Brands by 160.1% during the 4th quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,927 shares of the company’s stock worth $120,000 after acquiring an additional 1,186 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 93.06% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Scott H. Baxter sold 29,212 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.52, for a total value of $2,089,242.24. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 318,188 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $22,756,805.76. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other Kontoor Brands news, CEO Scott H. Baxter sold 29,212 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.52, for a total value of $2,089,242.24. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 318,188 shares in the company, valued at approximately $22,756,805.76. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CAO Susan Denise Sumner sold 4,713 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.36, for a total value of $341,032.68. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 15,379 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,112,824.44. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Kontoor Brands Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE KTB traded up $2.14 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $69.20. 357,149 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 409,569. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $68.86 and a two-hundred day moving average of $63.43. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.52, a PEG ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.96, a quick ratio of 1.42 and a current ratio of 2.70. Kontoor Brands, Inc. has a one year low of $39.90 and a one year high of $74.90.

Kontoor Brands (NYSE:KTB) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The company reported $1.16 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.90 by $0.26. Kontoor Brands had a return on equity of 71.45% and a net margin of 8.72%. The firm had revenue of $631.20 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $607.91 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.16 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 5.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Kontoor Brands, Inc. will post 4.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kontoor Brands Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 20th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 10th will be issued a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 10th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.89%. Kontoor Brands’s dividend payout ratio is currently 50.63%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the company. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on Kontoor Brands from $77.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 14th. Barclays upped their price target on Kontoor Brands from $65.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 3rd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on Kontoor Brands from $68.00 to $77.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Kontoor Brands has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $77.20.

About Kontoor Brands

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.