Geode Capital Management LLC Acquires 15,058 Shares of Kontoor Brands, Inc. (NYSE:KTB)

Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Kontoor Brands, Inc. (NYSE:KTB) by 1.3% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,203,100 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 15,058 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC owned 2.18% of Kontoor Brands worth $98,409,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Jennison Associates LLC raised its holdings in Kontoor Brands by 73.2% in the 3rd quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 757,426 shares of the company’s stock valued at $61,942,000 after acquiring an additional 320,117 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC increased its position in shares of Kontoor Brands by 351.7% in the second quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 347,325 shares of the company’s stock worth $22,976,000 after purchasing an additional 270,427 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP raised its stake in Kontoor Brands by 159.0% in the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 335,385 shares of the company’s stock valued at $22,186,000 after purchasing an additional 205,885 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its position in Kontoor Brands by 10.9% during the second quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 2,043,637 shares of the company’s stock worth $135,187,000 after purchasing an additional 201,399 shares during the period. Finally, Bwcp LP acquired a new stake in Kontoor Brands during the second quarter worth about $11,890,000. 93.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. UBS Group boosted their target price 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. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Kontoor Brands from $83.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Stifel Nicolaus downgraded Kontoor Brands from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and raised their target price for the company from $89.00 to $93.00 in a report on Friday, November 1st. Guggenheim boosted their price target on Kontoor Brands from $80.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Kontoor Brands from $80.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $95.00.

Kontoor Brands Stock Performance

NYSE KTB opened at $85.70 on Thursday. Kontoor Brands, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $52.95 and a fifty-two week high of $94.82. The stock has a market cap of $4.73 billion, a PE ratio of 19.30, a PEG ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.09, a quick ratio of 1.42 and a current ratio of 2.50. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $86.57 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $76.84.

Kontoor Brands (NYSE:KTB) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.26 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $670.19 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $663.45 million. Kontoor Brands had a return on equity of 73.99% and a net margin of 9.72%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.22 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Kontoor Brands, Inc. will post 4.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kontoor Brands Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 19th. Investors of record on Monday, December 9th will be issued a $0.52 dividend. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.43%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 9th. This is a positive change from Kontoor Brands’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. Kontoor Brands’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 46.85%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Thomas L. Doerr, Jr. sold 9,039 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.71, for a total value of $729,537.69. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 18,179 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,467,227.09. This represents a 33.21 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Scott H. Baxter sold 119,160 shares of Kontoor Brands stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.60, for a total value of $9,961,776.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 331,916 shares in the company, valued at approximately $27,748,177.60. This represents a 26.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Kontoor Brands Company 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.