Citigroup Lowers Lululemon Athletica (NASDAQ:LULU) to Neutral

Citigroup downgraded shares of Lululemon Athletica (NASDAQ:LULU) from a buy rating to a neutral rating in a research report report published on Thursday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The brokerage currently has $300.00 price objective on the apparel retailer’s stock, down from their prior price objective of $415.00.

LULU has been the subject of several other research reports. UBS Group decreased their target price on Lululemon Athletica from $475.00 to $385.00 and set a neutral rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 22nd. Barclays reduced their target price on Lululemon Athletica from $395.00 to $338.00 and set an equal weight rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, June 6th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Lululemon Athletica from $425.00 to $350.00 and set an equal weight rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, June 6th. Robert W. Baird dropped their target price on shares of Lululemon Athletica from $505.00 to $470.00 and set an outperform rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 3rd. Finally, Bank of America lifted their target price on Lululemon Athletica from $430.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Thursday, June 6th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and twenty-three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $416.26.

Lululemon Athletica Trading Up 2.5 %

NASDAQ:LULU opened at $253.50 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $31.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.33, a PEG ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 1.26. Lululemon Athletica has a 1-year low of $245.59 and a 1-year high of $516.39. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $300.18 and its 200 day moving average price is $376.57.

Lululemon Athletica (NASDAQ:LULU) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, June 5th. The apparel retailer reported $2.54 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.38 by $0.16. Lululemon Athletica had a return on equity of 42.64% and a net margin of 16.09%. The firm had revenue of $2.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.20 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.28 earnings per share. Lululemon Athletica’s quarterly revenue was up 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Lululemon Athletica will post 14.29 earnings per share for the current year.

Lululemon Athletica declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Wednesday, June 5th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the apparel retailer to buy up to 2.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lululemon Athletica

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of LULU. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Lululemon Athletica by 1.6% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 9,847,954 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $3,847,103,000 after purchasing an additional 154,985 shares in the last quarter. Value Star Asset Management Hong Kong Ltd increased its holdings in Lululemon Athletica by 19,890.3% in the second quarter. Value Star Asset Management Hong Kong Ltd now owns 4,653,746 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $1,390,074,000 after purchasing an additional 4,630,466 shares during the period. Capital World Investors raised its position in Lululemon Athletica by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 1,547,793 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $791,371,000 after purchasing an additional 14,112 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its holdings in Lululemon Athletica by 1.7% in the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,139,812 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $445,268,000 after acquiring an additional 18,924 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in Lululemon Athletica by 32.7% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,046,011 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $534,815,000 after purchasing an additional 257,944 shares during the last quarter. 85.20% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Lululemon Athletica

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.