Palmer Knight Co Increases Holdings in Lululemon Athletica Inc. (NASDAQ:LULU)

Palmer Knight Co raised its position in Lululemon Athletica Inc. (NASDAQ:LULU) by 0.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 22,169 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 26 shares during the quarter. Lululemon Athletica accounts for approximately 3.8% of Palmer Knight Co’s holdings, making the stock its 11th biggest holding. Palmer Knight Co’s holdings in Lululemon Athletica were worth $8,478,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Busey Bank purchased a new stake in Lululemon Athletica in the 4th quarter worth about $8,116,000. Legacy Trust grew its stake in Lululemon Athletica by 7.7% in the 4th quarter. Legacy Trust now owns 11,777 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $4,504,000 after acquiring an additional 837 shares in the last quarter. Baader Bank Aktiengesellschaft bought a new position in Lululemon Athletica in the 4th quarter worth about $225,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. bought a new position in Lululemon Athletica in the 4th quarter worth about $6,511,000. Finally, Asset Dedication LLC grew its stake in Lululemon Athletica by 194.9% in the 4th quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 696 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $266,000 after acquiring an additional 460 shares in the last quarter. 85.20% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Nicole Neuburger sold 2,022 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $387.11, for a total transaction of $782,736.42. Following the sale, the insider now owns 6,198 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,399,307.78. This trade represents a 24.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Celeste Burgoyne sold 24,870 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $405.54, for a total transaction of $10,085,779.80. Following the sale, the insider now owns 12,429 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,040,456.66. This represents a 66.68 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.48% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have commented on LULU. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their target price on shares of Lululemon Athletica from $292.00 to $396.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Lululemon Athletica from $315.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Guggenheim increased their price objective on shares of Lululemon Athletica from $350.00 to $415.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Needham & Company LLC upgraded shares of Lululemon Athletica from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $475.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Lululemon Athletica from $414.00 to $420.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and twenty have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $395.67.

Lululemon Athletica Price Performance

Shares of Lululemon Athletica stock opened at $411.16 on Thursday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $372.62 and a 200 day moving average price of $309.37. Lululemon Athletica Inc. has a 1 year low of $226.01 and a 1 year high of $491.30. The stock has a market cap of $50.07 billion, a PE ratio of 29.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 1.18.

Lululemon Athletica (NASDAQ:LULU) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, December 5th. The apparel retailer reported $2.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.69 by $0.18. Lululemon Athletica had a net margin of 17.05% and a return on equity of 42.16%. The firm had revenue of $2.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.36 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.53 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that Lululemon Athletica Inc. will post 14.34 EPS for the current year.

Lululemon Athletica Company Profile

Lululemon Athletica Inc, together with its subsidiaries, designs, distributes, and retails athletic apparel, footwear, and accessories under the lululemon brand for women and men. It offers pants, shorts, tops, and jackets for healthy lifestyle, such as yoga, running, training, and other activities. It also provides fitness-inspired accessories.