ProShare Advisors LLC Boosts Stake in Lululemon Athletica Inc. (NASDAQ:LULU)

ProShare Advisors LLC increased its stake in Lululemon Athletica Inc. (NASDAQ:LULU) by 24.1% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 135,637 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 26,366 shares during the period. ProShare Advisors LLC owned about 0.11% of Lululemon Athletica worth $52,987,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Lululemon Athletica by 32.3% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 9,692,969 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $4,955,918,000 after purchasing an additional 2,369,119 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its position in Lululemon Athletica by 51,219.6% during the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 688,196 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $351,868,000 after acquiring an additional 686,855 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Lululemon Athletica during the fourth quarter worth approximately $236,378,000. Northern Trust Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Lululemon Athletica by 32.7% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,046,011 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $534,815,000 after acquiring an additional 257,944 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Lululemon Athletica by 61.7% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 653,391 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $334,072,000 after purchasing an additional 249,232 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 85.20% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have weighed in on LULU. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on shares of Lululemon Athletica from $240.00 to $220.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. HSBC upgraded Lululemon Athletica from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the company from $405.00 to $425.00 in a report on Thursday, June 6th. Needham & Company LLC decreased their price target on Lululemon Athletica from $525.00 to $500.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price objective on Lululemon Athletica from $521.00 to $463.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 24th. Finally, Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $445.00 target price on shares of Lululemon Athletica in a research note on Thursday, June 6th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and twenty-four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $431.29.

Lululemon Athletica Stock Up 0.3 %

LULU traded up $0.92 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $292.68. 1,559,660 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,041,456. The firm has a market capitalization of $36.59 billion, a PE ratio of 23.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.26. The company’s 50-day moving average is $311.66 and its 200 day moving average is $389.01. Lululemon Athletica Inc. has a 52 week low of $282.04 and a 52 week high of $516.39.

Lululemon Athletica (NASDAQ:LULU) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, June 5th. The apparel retailer reported $2.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.38 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $2.21 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.20 billion. Lululemon Athletica had a return on equity of 42.64% and a net margin of 16.09%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.28 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Lululemon Athletica Inc. will post 14.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lululemon Athletica declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Wednesday, June 5th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the apparel retailer to repurchase up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Lululemon Athletica Profile

Lululemon Athletica Inc, together with its subsidiaries, designs, distributes, and retails athletic apparel, footwear, and accessories under the lululemon brand for women and men. It offers pants, shorts, tops, and jackets for healthy lifestyle, such as yoga, running, training, and other activities. It also provides fitness-inspired accessories.