Ralph Lauren Corporation RL reached a new 52-week high of $256.71 yesterday, a significant milestone that has caught investors’ attention. The company's ongoing strategic initiatives and favorable economic conditions set a positive tone for its performance, leaving investors pondering whether it's time to buy the stock, hold their positions or book profits.
In the past six months, Ralph Lauren has risen 59.2% compared with the industry’s growth of 33.1%. It has outperformed the broader Consumer Discretionary sector and the S&P 500 index, which posted growth of 18.3% and 13.5%, respectively.
This upward trajectory is driven by Ralph Lauren’s strong brand presence, diverse product portfolio and expanding e-commerce capabilities, which continue to strengthen its market position. The company's growing store footprint, coupled with its focus on innovation and integration of AI technology, reflects its commitment to staying ahead in the evolving fashion industry and achieving sustained growth.
RL Stock’s Six-Month Performance
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
Technical indicators support Ralph Lauren’s strong performance. The stock currently trades above its 50-day and 200-day moving averages, indicating robust upward momentum and price stability. This technical strength implies a positive market sentiment and growing confidence in RL’s prospects.
RL Trades Above 50 and 200-Day Moving Average
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
Decoding the Trends Driving RL’s Stock Momentum
Ralph Lauren is well known for its timeless style and strategic growth initiatives. The company’s Next Great Chapter: Accelerate Plan is driving it toward exceeding its top- and bottom-line targets through a streamlined global organizational structure and advanced technological capabilities. The plan focuses on three strategic pillars: elevating and energizing the lifestyle brand, driving the core while expanding opportunities, and winning key cities with a robust consumer ecosystem.
By transitioning the Chaps brand to a licensed business, the company completed its portfolio realignment, allowing it to concentrate on core brands. Additionally, Ralph Lauren’s strategy of product elevation, personalized and targeted promotions, disciplined inventory management, and a favorable channel and geographic mix positions it well for sustained growth and enhanced profitability.
Ralph Lauren is making significant progress in expanding digital and omnichannel capabilities through investments in mobile, omnichannel and fulfillment. The company’s digital business, including its directly operated sites, departmentstore.com, pure players and social commerce, has been impressive. It added 1.5 million new consumers to its direct-to-consumer (DTC) business in second-quarter fiscal 2025, reflecting a high single-digit increase year over year.
How are Estimates Faring for RL Stock?
Indicating the positive sentiment, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for RL’s earnings per share (EPS) has seen upward revisions. In the past 30 days, analysts have increased their estimates for the current and the next fiscal year EPS by 1 cent to $11.75 and $13.13 per share, respectively. These estimates indicate year-over-year EPS growth of 13.9% and 11.7%, respectively.
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How Should You Play RL Stock?
Ralph Lauren’s recent 52-week high reflects its commitment to a diversified growth strategy, emphasizing product elevation, personalized and targeted promotions, disciplined inventory management, and a favorable channel and geographic mix. This demonstrates the company’s resilience and strong growth potential. With an optimistic outlook and upward revisions in earnings estimates, Ralph Lauren is well-positioned for sustained long-term growth. As a result, the company's Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) presents a compelling opportunity for investors seeking growth in the fashion and lifestyle sector.
Other Key Picks
Some other top-ranked stocks in the Consumer Discretionary space are Wolverine World Wide WWW, V.F. Corporation VFC and Steven Madden, Ltd. SHOO.
Wolverine designs, manufactures and distributes a wide variety of casual and active apparel and footwear. The company sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) at present. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for WWW’s current financial-year sales indicates a decline of almost 22% from the year-ago figure. The consensus mark for EPS indicates significant growth to 90 cents from 5 cents reported in the prior year. WWW has a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 17.03%, on average.
V.F. Corp designs, manufactures and markets branded apparel and related products in the United States and internationally. This Zacks Rank #1 company has a negative trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 818.9%, on average.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for V.F. Corp’s current fiscal-year sales and EPS implies declines of 8.4% and 35.1%, respectively, from the prior-year actuals.
Steven Madden designs, sources, markets and sells fashion-forward name-brand and private-label footwear. It currently has a Zacks Rank #2.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Steven Madden’s 2024 earnings and sales indicates growth of 8.6% and 13.6%, respectively, from the year-ago actuals. SHOO has a trailing four-quarter average earnings surprise of 9.8%.
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Ralph Lauren Corporation (RL) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Wolverine World Wide, Inc. (WWW) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Steven Madden, Ltd. (SHOO) : Free Stock Analysis Report
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