V.F. (NYSE:VFC) Downgraded by Wall Street Zen to Hold

Wall Street Zen cut shares of V.F. (NYSE:VFC) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note issued to investors on Saturday morning.

Several other research firms have also commented on VFC. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on shares of V.F. from $16.00 to $18.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of V.F. in a report on Wednesday, January 14th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $18.00 price objective on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of V.F. from $12.00 to $15.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 16th. Telsey Advisory Group set a $20.00 target price on shares of V.F. in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, Truist Financial set a $18.00 price target on shares of V.F. in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, V.F. presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $18.16.

V.F. Stock Performance

VFC stock opened at $15.97 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $6.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 1.64. V.F. has a 1 year low of $9.41 and a 1 year high of $21.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.99, a current ratio of 1.55 and a quick ratio of 1.03. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $19.43 and its 200-day moving average price is $17.15.

V.F. (NYSE:VFC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 28th. The textile maker reported $0.58 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.43 by $0.15. V.F. had a return on equity of 19.08% and a net margin of 2.33%.The company had revenue of $2.88 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.81 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.62 earnings per share. V.F.’s revenue was up 1.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that V.F. will post 0.73 earnings per share for the current year.

V.F. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 10th will be given a dividend of $0.09 per share. This represents a $0.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 10th. V.F.’s payout ratio is presently 65.45%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Juliana L. Chugg sold 6,678 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.30, for a total value of $142,241.40. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 40 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $852. This represents a 99.40% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On V.F.

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC boosted its position in shares of V.F. by 43.4% in the third quarter. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC now owns 4,938,084 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $71,257,000 after purchasing an additional 1,495,148 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its position in shares of V.F. by 104.7% during the 2nd quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 567,886 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $6,673,000 after purchasing an additional 290,444 shares during the period. Fiduciary Alliance LLC lifted its stake in shares of V.F. by 22.0% during the 3rd quarter. Fiduciary Alliance LLC now owns 586,877 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $8,469,000 after buying an additional 105,786 shares in the last quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund lifted its stake in shares of V.F. by 21.3% during the 2nd quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 573,649 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $6,740,000 after buying an additional 100,680 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its holdings in V.F. by 115.2% in the 3rd quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 113,951 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $1,644,000 after buying an additional 60,998 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.84% of the company’s stock.

About V.F.

VF Corporation, commonly branded as VF, is a global apparel and footwear company that develops, markets and distributes a diverse portfolio of consumer brands. Its offerings span outdoor and action sports apparel, footwear and accessories under marquee names such as The North Face, Vans, Timberland, Dickies, JanSport and Smartwool. Through a “house of brands” strategy, VF leverages the unique heritage and design expertise of each label to serve distinct lifestyle and performance segments.

Founded in 1899 in Pennsylvania as the Reading Glove and Mitten Manufacturing Company, VF evolved through a series of acquisitions and strategic expansions to become a leading player in the global apparel industry.