Barclays Begins Coverage on Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI)

Stock analysts at Barclays initiated coverage on shares of Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI) in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage set an “overweight” rating and a $24.00 price target on the blue-jean maker’s stock. Barclays‘s price objective indicates a potential upside of 35.59% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other brokerages have also weighed in on LEVI. TD Cowen decreased their target price on Levi Strauss & Co. from $25.00 to $23.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on shares of Levi Strauss & Co. from $28.00 to $25.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $26.00 target price on shares of Levi Strauss & Co. in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Levi Strauss & Co. from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $22.89.

Levi Strauss & Co. Stock Performance

Shares of LEVI opened at $17.70 on Wednesday. Levi Strauss & Co. has a 52-week low of $14.87 and a 52-week high of $24.34. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $17.16 and its 200 day simple moving average is $18.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 1.41. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 46.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 1.16.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Levi Strauss & Co. news, Director David A. Friedman sold 4,166 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.00, for a total transaction of $74,988.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 104,178 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,875,204. This trade represents a 3.85 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 3.14% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Levi Strauss & Co.

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. FMR LLC grew its position in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. by 44.6% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 9,420,007 shares of the blue-jean maker’s stock worth $205,356,000 after purchasing an additional 2,907,099 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP increased its holdings in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. by 21.5% in the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 4,274,326 shares of the blue-jean maker’s stock worth $82,409,000 after purchasing an additional 756,926 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. by 2,083.0% during the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,923,206 shares of the blue-jean maker’s stock worth $37,079,000 after acquiring an additional 1,835,107 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its holdings in shares of Levi Strauss & Co. by 59.4% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,555,382 shares of the blue-jean maker’s stock worth $33,907,000 after buying an additional 579,460 shares during the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in Levi Strauss & Co. by 2,070.8% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,431,518 shares of the blue-jean maker’s stock worth $27,600,000 after acquiring an additional 1,365,574 shares during the last quarter. 69.14% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Levi Strauss & Co. Company Profile

Levi Strauss & Co designs, markets, and sells apparels and related accessories for men, women, and children worldwide. The company offers jeans, casual and dress pants, activewears, tops, shorts, skirts, dresses, jumpsuits, shirts, sweaters, jackets, footwear, and related accessories under the Levi's, Dockers, Signature by Levi Strauss & Co, Denizen, and Beyond Yoga brands.