Traders Purchase Large Volume of Call Options on Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI)

Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI) saw some unusual options trading on Thursday. Investors bought 5,525 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 234% compared to the typical daily volume of 1,654 call options.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on LEVI shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Levi Strauss & Co. from $33.00 to $34.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Levi Strauss & Co. in a research report on Wednesday, September 23rd. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Levi Strauss & Co. in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $28.00 price target on shares of Levi Strauss & Co. in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered Levi Strauss & Co. from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, October 3rd. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $26.23.

Insider Activity at Levi Strauss & Co.

In other news, EVP Harmit Singh sold 98,144 shares of Levi Strauss & Co. stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.22, for a total value of $2,377,047.68. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 98,747 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,391,652.34. This trade represents a 49.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 1.08% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Levi Strauss & Co.

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its position in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. by 462.4% during the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 4,839,861 shares of the blue-jean maker’s stock valued at $89,489,000 after acquiring an additional 3,979,223 shares in the last quarter. Eastern Bank acquired a new position in Levi Strauss & Co. in the second quarter worth about $60,854,000. Swedbank AB acquired a new position in Levi Strauss & Co. in the first quarter worth about $24,799,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Levi Strauss & Co. by 44.0% during the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 4,243,680 shares of the blue-jean maker’s stock valued at $88,014,000 after purchasing an additional 1,296,474 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GW&K Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. by 31.5% in the 4th quarter. GW&K Investment Management LLC now owns 2,219,599 shares of the blue-jean maker’s stock valued at $46,034,000 after purchasing an additional 531,963 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 69.14% of the company’s stock.

More Levi Strauss & Co. News

Here are the key news stories impacting Levi Strauss & Co. this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Levi Strauss reported third-quarter adjusted EPS of $0.48, well above the $0.36 analyst consensus and up from $0.34 a year earlier, as wider margins improved profitability. Levi Strauss beats third-quarter profit estimates as margins widen
• Positive Sentiment: The company raised fiscal 2026 adjusted EPS guidance to $1.54-$1.56, from $1.46-$1.52 previously. The outlook benefited from approximately $80 million in tariff refunds, which Levi plans to largely reinvest in the business. Levi Strauss hikes profit guidance after tariff refunds
• Positive Sentiment: International and wholesale operations, along with lifestyle categories such as Beyond Yoga, delivered stronger growth. Management also cited an AI shopping assistant as a potential catalyst for its direct-to-consumer business. Levi tariff refunds and AI shopping assistant
• Positive Sentiment: Levi declared a quarterly dividend of $0.16 per share, equivalent to $0.64 annually and a stated yield of about 3.4%. Levi Strauss quarterly dividend
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst views remain mixed: Needham reaffirmed a Buy rating with a $28 target, while Wells Fargo cut its target to $20 and maintained an Equal Weight rating.
• Negative Sentiment: Third-quarter revenue of $1.61 billion missed the $1.62 billion consensus, although it increased 4.3% year over year. Direct-to-consumer revenue growth was only 2%, with continued U.S. consumer and traffic pressure. Levi Strauss stock falls on mixed financial results
• Negative Sentiment: Levi forecast fiscal 2026 revenue of approximately $6.7 billion, below the roughly $6.8 billion analyst expectation, and reduced its sales-growth outlook to the low end of its prior range. The earnings guidance increase therefore appears partly dependent on tariff refunds rather than stronger underlying sales.

Levi Strauss & Co. Stock Performance

Shares of Levi Strauss & Co. stock traded down $0.72 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $18.79. The company had a trading volume of 5,404,404 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,735,648. Levi Strauss & Co. has a 1-year low of $17.72 and a 1-year high of $25.70. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $21.30 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $22.14. The stock has a market cap of $7.23 billion, a PE ratio of 11.58, a P/E/G ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 1.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 1.60 and a quick ratio of 0.98.

Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 7th. The blue-jean maker reported $0.48 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.36 by $0.12. Levi Strauss & Co. had a net margin of 9.66% and a return on equity of 25.79%. The firm had revenue of $1.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.62 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.34 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Levi Strauss & Co. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.540-1.560 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Levi Strauss & Co. will post 1.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Levi Strauss & Co. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 4th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, October 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.16 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, October 21st. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.4%. Levi Strauss & Co.’s payout ratio is presently 39.51%.

About Levi Strauss & Co.

Levi Strauss & Co is an apparel company best known for its Levi’s brand of denim jeans and related clothing. Its product portfolio includes jeans, tops, bottoms, jackets, footwear, accessories and other casualwear for men, women and children.

Founded in 1853 and headquartered in San Francisco, California, the company also owns the Dockers, Beyond Yoga and Signature by Levi Strauss & Co brands. Levi Strauss & Co sells its products through company-operated stores, e-commerce platforms, wholesale partners and other distribution channels.

The company serves customers in North America, Europe, Asia and other international markets.