Ralph Lauren: shares gain after strategic plan

(CercleFinance.com) - Shares of Ralph Lauren are up over 2% on Thursday after the US premium fashion designer presented its new strategic growth plan to investors and analysts.


The company said it intends to win over a new generation of consumers, energize core products, accelerate underdeveloped categories and drive expansion in its regions and channels.

In financial terms, Ralph Lauren plans to raise its quarterly cash dividend by 25% to 0.625 dollar per share, representing a new annual dividend of 2.50 dollars per share.

In addition, its board has authorized an additional 1 billion dollars stock repurchase program.

In all, through dividends and repurchases, the company plans to return 100% of its free cash flow to shareholders over the next five years, returning over 2.5 billion dollars through 2023.

Investors cheered these announcements, with the stock up 2.2% at 142.7 dollars in early morning trading on Thursday.

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