Carter’s, Inc. (NYSE:CRI) Stock Rated “Moderate Buy” by Sell-Side Brokerages

Carter’s, Inc. (NYSE:CRI) has earned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the ten research firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, three have given a hold recommendation, four have given a buy recommendation and two have assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month target price among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $40.88.

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Carter’s from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Thursday, August 13th. Wall Street Zen raised Carter’s from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, September 12th. Capital One Financial set a $40.00 target price on Carter’s in a research note on Tuesday, September 8th. Citigroup reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Carter’s in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on Carter’s in a research note on Tuesday, September 8th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $40.00 price target for the company.

Carter’s Trading Up 1.5%

CRI stock opened at $30.21 on Friday. Carter’s has a one year low of $27.15 and a one year high of $44.44. The stock has a market cap of $1.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.48 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $35.30 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $36.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 2.47 and a quick ratio of 1.50.

Carter’s (NYSE:CRI) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 31st. The textile maker reported $0.26 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.06 by $0.20. The company had revenue of $615.49 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $605.68 million. Carter’s had a net margin of 6.55% and a return on equity of 12.78%. The company’s revenue was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.17 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Carter’s will post 3.28 EPS for the current year.

Carter’s Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 25th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 1st will be issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 1st. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.3%. Carter’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 18.73%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Carter’s

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new position in shares of Carter’s during the 2nd quarter worth $28,348,000. Rubric Capital Management LP boosted its stake in Carter’s by 121.5% in the first quarter. Rubric Capital Management LP now owns 1,018,853 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $36,434,000 after buying an additional 558,853 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in Carter’s by 36.6% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,765,205 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $63,121,000 after acquiring an additional 472,786 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC bought a new position in Carter’s in the first quarter valued at about $4,896,000. Finally, Aristides Capital LLC raised its stake in Carter’s by 123.3% during the first quarter. Aristides Capital LLC now owns 163,949 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $5,863,000 after acquiring an additional 90,533 shares in the last quarter.

Carter’s Company Profile

Carter’s, Inc (NYSE:CRI) is a specialty retailer and branded marketer of apparel, accessories and related products for babies and young children. The company’s portfolio includes Carter’s, OshKosh B’gosh, Skip Hop and Little Planet, offering items such as bodysuits, sleepwear, playwear, footwear, outerwear, accessories, baby gear and nursery products.

Founded in 1865 by William Carter, the company has developed into a major children’s apparel business. Carter’s products are sold through company-operated retail stores, e-commerce websites and wholesale partners, including department stores, mass merchants, specialty retailers and other distribution channels.

The company primarily serves customers in the United States and Canada, while also reaching international markets through select wholesale, licensing and distribution arrangements.