Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd Makes New $1.42 Million Investment in Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI)

Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 81,811 shares of the blue-jean maker’s stock, valued at approximately $1,415,000.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of LEVI. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. during the 3rd quarter worth $27,000. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in Levi Strauss & Co. during the 4th quarter valued at $39,000. Matrix Trust Co raised its stake in Levi Strauss & Co. by 678.9% during the 4th quarter. Matrix Trust Co now owns 5,507 shares of the blue-jean maker’s stock valued at $95,000 after purchasing an additional 4,800 shares during the last quarter. R Squared Ltd acquired a new position in Levi Strauss & Co. during the 4th quarter valued at $105,000. Finally, Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. raised its stake in Levi Strauss & Co. by 2,904.1% during the 3rd quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. now owns 5,137 shares of the blue-jean maker’s stock valued at $112,000 after purchasing an additional 4,966 shares during the last quarter. 69.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Levi Strauss & Co. news, Director David A. Friedman sold 8,332 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.00, for a total transaction of $149,976.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 108,344 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,950,192. This represents a 7.14 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders sold 16,664 shares of company stock worth $301,785 in the last quarter. 3.14% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Levi Strauss & Co. Trading Down 4.0 %

Shares of Levi Strauss & Co. stock opened at $18.15 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $17.90 and a 200 day simple moving average of $18.24. Levi Strauss & Co. has a 12-month low of $15.62 and a 12-month high of $24.34.

Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI) last announced its 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 net margin of 3.32% and a return on equity of 25.88%. Research analysts expect that Levi Strauss & Co. will post 1.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Levi Strauss & Co. Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 12th will be given a dividend of $0.13 per share. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.87%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 12th. Levi Strauss & Co.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 100.00%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Barclays cut their target price on shares of Levi Strauss & Co. from $24.00 to $22.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Levi Strauss & Co. from $20.00 to $17.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Telsey Advisory Group dropped their price objective on shares of Levi Strauss & Co. from $26.00 to $23.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of Levi Strauss & Co. from $18.00 to $17.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Citigroup dropped their price objective on shares of Levi Strauss & Co. from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $21.27.

About Levi Strauss & Co.

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.