Kontoor Brands, Inc. (NYSE:KTB) Short Interest Up 49.5% in March

Kontoor Brands, Inc. (NYSE:KTB) was the target of a large increase in short interest during the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 4,650,000 shares, an increase of 49.5% from the March 15th total of 3,110,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 569,300 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 8.2 days. Approximately 8.5% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. UBS Group upped their price objective on Kontoor Brands from $83.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 16th. Edward Jones downgraded Kontoor Brands from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 26th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Kontoor Brands from $56.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on Kontoor Brands from $56.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th. Finally, Barclays lowered their target price on Kontoor Brands from $75.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $70.40.

Kontoor Brands Price Performance

KTB traded down $0.27 on Friday, reaching $53.96. The stock had a trading volume of 531,913 shares, compared to its average volume of 717,258. Kontoor Brands has a fifty-two week low of $37.10 and a fifty-two week high of $64.49. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $59.67 and a 200-day moving average of $55.64. The company has a current ratio of 2.66, a quick ratio of 1.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.05. The company has a market capitalization of $3.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 1.13.

Kontoor Brands (NYSE:KTB) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 28th. The company reported $1.35 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.37 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $669.80 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $720.70 million. Kontoor Brands had a net margin of 8.86% and a return on equity of 76.30%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Kontoor Brands will post 4.7 EPS for the current year.

Kontoor Brands Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 18th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 8th were paid a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 7th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.71%. Kontoor Brands’s payout ratio is 49.26%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Kontoor Brands

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in KTB. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Kontoor Brands during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC boosted its position in shares of Kontoor Brands by 5,710.0% during the 3rd quarter. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 581 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 571 shares in the last quarter. Principal Securities Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Kontoor Brands during the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Ronald Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in shares of Kontoor Brands by 225.8% during the 3rd quarter. Ronald Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,098 shares of the company’s stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 761 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Oakworth Capital Inc. boosted its position in shares of Kontoor Brands by 157.8% during the 4th quarter. Oakworth Capital Inc. now owns 781 shares of the company’s stock valued at $49,000 after purchasing an additional 478 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.06% of the company’s stock.

About Kontoor Brands

Kontoor Brands, Inc, a lifestyle apparel company, designs, produces, procures, markets, distributes, and licenses denim, apparel, footwear, and accessories, primarily under the Wrangler and Lee brands. The company operates through two segments: Wrangler and Lee. It licenses and sells apparel under the Rock & Republic brand name.