Gildan Activewear, Inc. $GIL Shares Sold by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Principal Financial Group Inc. trimmed its position in shares of Gildan Activewear, Inc. (NYSE:GIL) (TSE:GIL) by 1.8% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 443,040 shares of the textile maker’s stock after selling 7,960 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Gildan Activewear were worth $25,600,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. JCIC Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Gildan Activewear in the 3rd quarter valued at about $6,920,000. Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. increased its stake in shares of Gildan Activewear by 11.8% during the second quarter. Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. now owns 92,792 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $4,561,000 after buying an additional 9,774 shares during the period. Oakcliff Capital Partners LP raised its holdings in Gildan Activewear by 11.4% in the second quarter. Oakcliff Capital Partners LP now owns 681,689 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $33,566,000 after acquiring an additional 70,000 shares in the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. raised its holdings in Gildan Activewear by 4.6% in the second quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 11,207 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $552,000 after acquiring an additional 493 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of Nova Scotia lifted its stake in Gildan Activewear by 14.0% in the second quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 528,681 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $26,043,000 after acquiring an additional 65,090 shares during the last quarter. 82.83% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Gildan Activewear Stock Up 5.4%

Gildan Activewear stock opened at $71.27 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $13.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.77 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 2.01. Gildan Activewear, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $37.16 and a fifty-two week high of $71.68. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $63.17 and a 200-day simple moving average of $58.69.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have commented on GIL shares. Barclays reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $70.00 price objective (up from $64.00) on shares of Gildan Activewear in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. Zacks Research lowered Gildan Activewear from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 23rd. TD Securities restated a “buy” rating and issued a $77.00 price target on shares of Gildan Activewear in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. Scotiabank reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Gildan Activewear in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Gildan Activewear in a report on Monday, December 29th. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $77.54.

About Gildan Activewear

Gildan Activewear Inc (NYSE:GIL) is a vertically integrated manufacturer and wholesaler of branded basic apparel, including activewear, socks, hosiery and underwear. Headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, the company produces a wide range of products such as T-shirts, fleece garments, sport shirts, performance wear, and shapewear under its Gildan, Anvil, Comfort Colors, Gold Toe, Peds and Silks brands. Leveraging its in-house knitting, dyeing, cut-and-sew and finishing operations, Gildan supplies blank apparel to screen printers, promotional product distributors and major retailers around the world.

Since its founding in 1984 by Glenn J.