Vipshop Holdings Limited (NYSE:VIPS) Shares Purchased by Lazard Asset Management LLC

Lazard Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Vipshop Holdings Limited (NYSE:VIPS) by 3.3% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 1,392,497 shares of the technology company’s stock after acquiring an additional 44,863 shares during the period. Lazard Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Vipshop were worth $18,756,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of VIPS. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its holdings in Vipshop by 5.3% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 382,922 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $6,299,000 after acquiring an additional 19,367 shares during the period. Ritholtz Wealth Management boosted its stake in shares of Vipshop by 27.2% during the 4th quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 136,360 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $1,837,000 after buying an additional 29,192 shares during the last quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Vipshop by 10.8% during the 4th quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc. now owns 12,241 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $165,000 after buying an additional 1,191 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Vipshop by 17.5% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 9,972 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $134,000 after buying an additional 1,487 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Vipshop by 24.0% during the 4th quarter. Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC now owns 19,573 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $264,000 after buying an additional 3,782 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 48.82% of the company’s stock.

Vipshop Trading Up 0.3%

VIPS stock opened at $14.84 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $7.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.10, a P/E/G ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.60. Vipshop Holdings Limited has a 12-month low of $11.50 and a 12-month high of $17.94. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $14.58 and its 200 day simple moving average is $14.28.

Vipshop (NYSE:VIPS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The technology company reported $0.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.70 by ($0.05). Vipshop had a net margin of 7.50% and a return on equity of 20.89%. The firm had revenue of $4.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.82 billion. On average, research analysts forecast that Vipshop Holdings Limited will post 1.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vipshop Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced an annual dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 25th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 11th were given a $0.43 dividend. This represents a yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 11th. Vipshop’s dividend payout ratio is presently 24.24%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently commented on VIPS. StockNews.com upgraded Vipshop from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Barclays increased their target price on Vipshop from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, Citigroup cut Vipshop from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $18.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $15.30.

Vipshop Profile

Vipshop Holdings Limited operates online platforms in the People's Republic of China. It operates in Vip.com, Shan Shan Outlets, and Others segments. The company offers womenswear, menswear, sportswear and sporting goods, shoes and bags, accessories, baby and children products, skincare and cosmetics, home goods and other lifestyle products, and supermarket products.