Insider Trading Fri 6/14/24

Notable purchases -- President/CEO adds to DTC; notable sales -- CEO active in DELL

Buyers:

• CATX Chief Executive Officer bought 100,000 shares at $1.165 - $1.18 worth ~$117K.
• CODI Chief Financial Officer of Compass Group Diversified Holdings LLC (Trust) bought 5,000 shares at $22.39 - $22.4599 worth ~$112K.
• DTC President and Chief Executive Officer bought 150,000 shares at $1.88 - $1.98 worth approx. $295K.
• FF Director bought 100,000 shares at $4.50 - $4.66 worth ~$458K.
• GXO Chief Executive Officer bought 10,000 shares at $ 49.95 worth ~$500K.
• PEGA Director bought 8,600 shares at $58.24 - $58.82 worth ~$504K.
• NUVB Director bought 172,189 shares at $2.835 - $2.96 worth ~$500K.
• PRM Director bought 42000 shares at $7.149 worth ~$300K.
• TTSH 10% owner bought 74,303 shares at $6.48 - $6.67 worth ~$491K.
• VFC Director bought 25,000 shares at $13.77 - $13.78 worth ~$344K.

Sellers:

• CME Director sold 3,000 shares at $195.44 worth ~$586K.
• DELL Chief Executive  Officer / 10% owner sold 5,681,929 shares of Class C Common Stock at $130.14 - $136.17 worth ~$76 mln.
• SOFI Director by deputization (Qatar Investment) sold 19,840,073 shares at $6.75 - $6.9137 worth ~$134.5 mln.
• UFPI Pres, UFP Construction sold 11,725 shares at $115.27 worth ~$1.35 mln.
• WST SVP, Chief Technology Officer sold 1800 shares at weighted average price of $330.78  worth ~$595K.

Insider Trading Tue 6/11/24

Notable purchases -- CEO adds to MXCT; notable sales -- CRO active in JPM

Buyers:

• AUB Director bought 14,467 shares at $30.85 - $31.71 worth approx. $454K.

• DSGR Director bought 4,000 shares at $30.24 worth about $121K.

• HWKN Director bought 3,300 shares at $86.50 - $88.43 worth ~$289K.

• FCPT President / Chief Executive Officer bought 6,230 shares at $24.05 worth ~$150K.

• MTN EVP & Chief Financial Officer bought 575 shares at $176.20 worth more than $100K.

• MXCT President / Chief Executive Officer bought 100,000 shares at $4.77 - $5.00 worth ~$489K.

• OEC Chief Financial Officer bought 5,000 shares at $23.68 worth ~$118K.

• SAIC Chief Financial Officer bought 2,000 shares at $114.85 worth ~$230K.

• SHEN President / Chief Executive Officer and SVP Finance / Chief Financial Officer bought 18,187 shares combined at $15.79 - $17.00 worth ~$297K.

• SNOW Director bought 76,200 shares at $130.83 - $131.50 worth ~$10 mln.

• TTSH 10% owner bought 109,194 shares at $6.55 - $6.75 worth ~$720K.

• VFC President / Chief Executive Officer bought 75,200 shares at $13.20 - $13.30 worth nearly $1 mln.

Sellers:

• JPM Chief Risk Officer sold 5,086 shares at $199.5393 worth approx. $1.0 mln.

• PSA Chief Legal Officer sold 400 shares at $274.285 worth ~$110K.

Unusual Options Activity Fri 3/15/24

The following options are exhibiting notable trading, potentially indicating changing sentiment toward the underlying stocks, and/or potentially representing positioning for increased volatility.

Bullish Call Activity:

• VFC March 14.5 Calls (volume: 2523, open int: 85, implied vol: ~125%, prev day implied vol: 65%). Co is expected to report earnings mid May.
• ARMK March 31 Calls (volume: 2405, open int: 9, implied vol: ~135%, prev day implied vol: 22%). Co is expected to report earnings early May.

Bearish Put Activity:

• Z March 51 Puts are seeing interest with the underlying stock down 15% (volume: 1438, open int: 0, implied vol: ~256%, prev day implied vol: 54%). Co is expected to report earnings early May.
• USFD March 55 Puts (volume: 1250, open int: , implied vol: ~177%, prev day implied vol: 20%). Co is expected to report earnings early May.

Sentiment: The CBOE Put/Call ratio is currently: 0.90, VIX: (14.40, +0.65, +4.73%).
March 15 is options expiration -- the last day to trade March equity options.

Insider Trading : Fri 8/11/23

Notable purchases -- JANA adds to THS; notable sales -- CEO active in PRI

Buyers:

• ADV Chief Executive Officer bought 50,000 shares at $2.60 - $2.66 worth ~$133K.
• AKRO Director bought 25,000 shares at $41.8634 - $42.3525 worth ~$1.1 mln.
• AVDL Chief Executive Officer bought 10,000 shares at $12.86 - $13.50 worth ~$132K.
• EMBC Chief Executive Officer/President, SVP-CFO, and SVP-General Counsel/Head of Business Development bought a total of 14,325 shares at $21.54 - $21.81 worth ~$311K.
• EXFY 10% owner bought 609,159 shares at $4.07 - $5.98 worth ~$2.8 mln.
• LTH Chief Executive Officer/Founder and Chief Financial Officer bought 42,951 shares at $16.73 - $17.15 worth ~$725K.
• MODV 10% owner Coliseum Capital bought 435,893 shares at $34.13 - $37.00 worth ~$15.6 mln.
• ONEW Chief Executive Officer / 10% owner bought 10,000 shares at $26.29 - $26.50 worth ~$264K.
• ROG Directors (2) bought a total of 3,665 shares at $148.0598 - $150.04 worth ~$549K.
• THS 10% owner JANA Partners (Barry Rosenstein) discloses the purchase of 41,500 shares worth approx. $1.9 mln.
• VFC Director bought 40,000 shares at $19.055 - $19.10 worth ~$764K.

Sellers:

• BYD Vice President sold 11,431 shares at $67.35 - $67.45 worth ~$770K.
• CNXN SVP, CFO & Treasurer sold 7,500 shares at $51.21 - $54.41 worth ~$398K.
• EQC EVP, General Counsel & Secretary sold 50,000 shares at $19.23 - $19.30 worth ~$963K.
• LPG Director sold 65,000 shares at $28.27 - $29.00 worth ~$1.9 mln.
• PRI Chief Executive Officer sold 4,000 shares at ~$213.4672 worth ~$854K.
• RSG EVP, Chief Marketing Officer sold 2,712 shares at $148.6504 - $148.70 worth ~$403K.

=V.F. Corp (VFC) reported earnings on Fri 25 Oct 2019 (b/o)

V.F. Corp misses by $0.04, reports revs in-line; reaffirms FY20 EPS guidance, revs guidance; increases quarterly dividend 12% to $0.48/share

Reports Q2 (Sep) earnings of $1.26 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.04 worse than the S&P Capital IQ Consensus of $1.30; revenues rose 5.4% year/year to $3.39 bln vs the $3.42 bln S&P Capital IQ Consensus.

Co reaffirms guidance for FY20, sees EPS of $3.32-3.37 vs. $3.39 S&P Capital IQ Consensus; sees FY20 revs of $11.8 bln vs. $11.87 bln S&P Capital IQ Consensus.

VF's Board of Directors declared a quarterly dividend of $0.48 per share, reflecting a 12 percent increase over the previous quarter's dividend. This dividend will be payable on December 20, 2019, to shareholders of record on December 10, 2019.

Kontoor (KTB) : Wrangler, Lee and a spin-off in denim

Sector: Consumer Cyclical
Industry: Apparel Manufacturing
Full Time Employees: 17,000
http://www.kontoorbrands.com

VF Corp. (VF) spun off Kontoor Brands, Inc. (KTB) on May 22, 2019 and regular trading in the shares began the next day.

After trading in the $40 range in when issued trading, Kontoor has fallen consistently since regular way trading began due to classic spin-off selling pressure.

Kontoor Brands is mainly comprised of the Wrangler and Lee denim brands. While these brands are not "hot", they are stable.

Scott Baxter, Kontoor Brands CEO and president, welcome employees at an event to celebrate the new company and it’s Wrangler and Lee brands employees at a BBQ lunch at corporate headquarters on North Elm Street in downtown Greensboro.

For example, revenue only declined by 11% during the Great Financial Recession. Further, denim has staying power. In 50 years, people will still be wearing jeans (although the styles will have changed).

Spin-offs usually unleash entrepreneurial forces as the spin-off is no longer weighed down by the bureaucracy of being part of a larger organization. This often results in the spin-off taking advantage of low hanging fruit that the parent company previously didn't prioritize.

An example of this is that Wrangler jeans are not available in China despite Lee being the leading denim brand in China. This will change in January 2020, when Wrangler will launch in China. Opportunities like this should improve KTB's revenue growth.

The quality of KTB's business is quite high as the business is not capital intensive; CapEx as a percentage of sales was only 0.80% in 2018. Historically, KTB has generated a return on equity of ~20%.

-=VF Corp (VFC) to spin off Lee, Wrangler jeans into public company

• The company that owns Lee and Wrangler will spin off its jeans brands into a separate entity as yoga pants and other alternatives shake up the clothing industry.

(Reuters) - VF Corp, one of the world's biggest apparel makers, will spin off Lee and Wrangler jeans into a separate public company, it said on Monday, allowing it to focus on more profitable Vans sneakers and The North Face outdoor wear.

Denims were responsible for more than half of VF's overall profit in 2000, but have since been outpaced by skateboarder favorite Vans, which has driven much of VF's recent growth.

The spin-off will also give VF more flexibility to pursue acquisitions, explore new business areas and focus more on activity-based outdoor products, a business that saw profit jump 15 percent in the year that ended in March.

Earnings from jeans slipped nearly 13 percent in the same period as big outlets including Walmart Inc increasingly stock their own denim brands.

"(Jeans) has been the weak link in the portfolio," Jane Hali, CEO of investment research firm Jane Hali & Associates, said via email. "Now they can concentrate on the outdoor coalition and Vans, a much more unified and strong stable of brands."

VF already sold off apparel brand Nautica last year to focus on faster-growing names. The new VF will have annual revenue of more than $11 billion, compared to just over $2.5 billion for the jeans unit.

The jeans company will focus on maintaining shareholders' dividend, cutting debt and increasing sales in China and other Asian markets. Acquisitions of smaller firms are a longer-term possibility, VF said.

VF will shift base to Denver while the still-to-be-named jeans maker will move to the company's traditional base in Greensboro, North Carolina and be led by Scott Baxter, currently president of VF's Americas West group.

Baxter led VF's jeans business from 2011 to 2015.

VF, which has a market value of about $38 billion, projected a 5-cent hit to current-quarter earnings per share due to the deal.

-=V.F. Corp (VFC) reported earnings on Fri 20 July 2018 (b/o)

V.F. Corp beats by $0.10, beats on revs; raises FY19 EPS, revs guidance 

• Reports Q1 (Jun) earnings of $0.43 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.10 better than the Capital IQ Consensus of $0.33; revenues rose 22.9% year/year to $2.79 bln vs the $2.68 bln Capital IQ Consensus.
• Gross margin from continuing operations increased 70 basis points to 50.3 percent; on an adjusted basis, gross margin increased 90 basis points to 50.5 percent; excluding the impact of acquisitions, on an adjusted basis, gross margin increased 170 basis points to 51.3 percent
• Co raises guidance for FY19, sees EPS of $3.52-3.57 [Includes about a $0.06 negative impact from unfavorable foreign currency exchange rates relative to the prior outlook](Prior $3.48-3.53)  vs. $3.55 Capital IQ Consensus Estimate; sees FY19 revs of $13.6-13.7 bln (Prior $13.45-13.55 bln) vs. $13.56 bln Capital IQ Consensus Estimate.

-=V.F. Corp (VFC) reported earnings on Mon 23 Oct 2017 (b/o)

V.F. Corp beats by $0.10, beats on revs; raises FY17 guidance; raises quarterly dividend 10% to $0.46/share

• Reports Q3 (Sep) earnings of $1.23 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.10 better than the Capital IQ Consensus of $1.13; revenues rose 5.4% year/year to $3.51 bln vs the $3.4 bln Capital IQ Consensus.
• Gross margin from continuing operations improved 100 basis points (up 180 basis points currency neutral) to 50.1 percent.
• Co issues raised guidancefor FY17, sees EPS of ~$3.01 from $2.96, excluding non-recurring items, vs. $3.01 Capital IQ Consensus Estimate; sees FY17 revs of ~$12.1 bln from $11.85 bln vs. $11.93 bln Capital IQ Consensus Estimate.
• "Based on the strength of our third quarter performance and the stronger growth trajectory we see for the remainder of 2017, we are again increasing our full year outlook and making additional growth-focused investments aimed at accelerating growth and value creation into 2018 and beyond. VF remains committed to returning cash to shareholders as evidenced by the increase in our dividend, which is supported by the strength of our balance sheet and the confidence we have in our strategic growth plan."
• Quarterly dividend rate increased by 10 percent to $0.46 per share.

=V.F. Corp (VFC) reported earnings on Fri 19 Feb 2016 (before open)

Clothing supplier V.F. Corp. (VFC) reported weaker-than-expected sales and earnings in the most-recent quarter. The company makes North Face, Lee and Wrangler jeans, jackets, shirts and other products, and its per-share profit of 95 cents missed the average forecast of $1.01. Sales dropped 4.6%.

V.F. Corp misses by $0.06, misses on revs; guides FY16 below consensus :

• Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.95 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.06 worse than the Capital IQ Consensus of $1.01; revenues fell 4.6% year/year (-1% ex-FX) to $3.41 bln vs the $3.64 bln Capital IQ Consensus.
  • Outdoor & action sports sales -3%, Jeans -2%, Imagewear -13%, sportswear -9%, contmemporary brands -19%, 
  • Reported gross margin was down 70 basis points to 48.3 percent as benefits from more favorable product costs and continued mix shift to higher margin businesses were offset by foreign currency headwinds and aggressive efforts to manage inventory.
• Co issues downside guidance for FY16, sees EPS  +5% to ~$3.23 vs. $3.44 Capital IQ Consensus Estimate. Revenue is expected to increase at a mid single-digit percentage rate (consensus +7.7%), including about one percentage point of negative impact from changes in foreign currency.
  • By coalition, revenue for Outdoor & Action Sports is expected to increase at a high single-digit percentage rate; mid single-digit growth for Jeanswear; low single-digit growth for Imagewear; a slight decline in Sportswear; and, a mid single-digit decline in the Contemporary Brands business. International revenue is expected to increase at a high single-digit rate on a currency neutral basis (up mid single-digit reported). Direct-to-consumer revenue is expected to grow at a low double-digit percentage rate, including about a point of negative impact from changes in foreign currency.
  • Gross margin is expected to improve by about 50 basis points to 48.8 percent, which includes about 70 basis points of headwind from changes in foreign currency.
  • VF expects to spend ~$1 billion under the company's share repurchase program
• "Our focus, discipline and agility amid a softer consumer environment, record warm weather and a strengthening U.S. dollar have us well positioned to navigate what we believe to be a relatively short-term challenge."

VF Corp (VFC) reported earnings on 10/23/15 b/o

** charts after earnings **

23 Oct 2015:  V.F. Corp misses by $0.05, misses on revs; guides FY15 EPS below consensus due to F/X impacts, reaffirms FY15 rev guidance; increases quarterly dividend 16%  :

• Reports Q3 (Sep) earnings of $1.07 per share, $0.05 worse than the Capital IQ Consensus of $1.12; revenues rose 2.6% year/year to $3.61 bln vs the $3.68 bln Capital IQ Consensus. Gross margin was 48.9% on a currency neutral basis, representing a 60 basis point improvement over the same period last year.
• Co issues guidance for FY15, sees EPS of $3.18 (prior $3.22) vs. $3.24 Capital IQ Consensus Estimate; sees FY15 revs of +3% to 12.65 bln vs. $12.73 bln Capital IQ Consensus Estimate.
• EPS guidance revision due to ~$0.04/share of greater than expected negative changes in foreign currency during the third quarter.