Olympiad Research LP Makes New $348,000 Investment in Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI)

Olympiad Research LP bought a new position in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 20,104 shares of the blue-jean maker’s stock, valued at approximately $348,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. KBC Group NV raised its stake in Levi Strauss & Co. by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 114,442 shares of the blue-jean maker’s stock worth $1,980,000 after acquiring an additional 892 shares in the last quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in Levi Strauss & Co. during the third quarter worth about $27,000. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. during the fourth quarter worth about $39,000. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its holdings in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. by 32.9% during the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 12,103 shares of the blue-jean maker’s stock worth $209,000 after purchasing an additional 2,998 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Matrix Trust Co grew its holdings in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. by 678.9% during the fourth quarter. Matrix Trust Co now owns 5,507 shares of the blue-jean maker’s stock worth $95,000 after purchasing an additional 4,800 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.14% of the company’s stock.

Levi Strauss & Co. Stock Performance

Shares of LEVI stock opened at $18.41 on Friday. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $17.84 and its 200 day simple moving average is $18.22. Levi Strauss & Co. has a one year low of $15.62 and a one year high of $24.34. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.29 billion, a PE ratio of 35.41, a PEG ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 1.42 and a quick ratio of 0.80.

Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The blue-jean maker reported $0.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.48 by $0.02. Levi Strauss & Co. had a return on equity of 25.88% and a net margin of 3.32%. As a group, research analysts forecast that Levi Strauss & Co. will post 1.27 earnings per share for the current year.

Levi Strauss & Co. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.13 per share. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.82%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 12th. Levi Strauss & Co.’s payout ratio is 100.00%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Levi Strauss & Co. news, Director David A. Friedman sold 4,166 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.44, for a total transaction of $76,821.04. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 100,012 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,844,221.28. This represents a 4.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In the last three months, insiders have sold 16,664 shares of company stock worth $301,785. Corporate insiders own 3.14% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently weighed in on LEVI shares. Citigroup reduced their price target on Levi Strauss & Co. from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 17th. Barclays reduced their price target on Levi Strauss & Co. from $24.00 to $22.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Levi Strauss & Co. from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 24th. Guggenheim boosted their price target on Levi Strauss & Co. from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on Levi Strauss & Co. from $20.00 to $17.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Levi Strauss & Co. presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $21.27.

Levi Strauss & Co. Company Profile

Levi Strauss & Co engages in the design, marketing, and sale of apparel products. The company offers jeans, casual and dress pants, tops, shorts, skirts, jackets, footwear, and related accessories. It operates through the following geographical segments: Americas, Europe, and Asia. The company was founded by Levi Strauss in 1853 and is headquartered in San Francisco, CA.