Ralph Lauren Corporation Class A RL

Most consumer discretionary businesses succeed or fail based on the broader economy. Unfortunately, the industry’s recent performance suggests demand may be fading as discretionary stocks have pulled back by 1.4% over the past six months. This drawdown is a noticeable divergence from the S&P 500’s 16.6% return.

Lululemon Athletica (LULU) stock offers a free cash flow yield of 12.4%, against 4.5% for the median S&P 500 company. Such a yield usually comes either from a business on sale or from one the market expects to shrink. So can you count on the cash behind Lululemon's yield.

Preppy styles from Ralph Lauren and cozy Ugg boots are back again, and the stocks should benefit. Ralph Lauren was a standout during the recently completed retail earnings season, with fiscal-first-quarter results coming in above expectations in nearly every metric. Jefferies analyst Blake Anderson gives Ralph Lauren high marks for its fashion execution in a new note Tuesday, and names it his top pick in the industry.

Ralph Lauren Corporation (NYSE:RL) closed at $351.86 on September 24, still well short of the high above $420 it set earlier in its twelve-month range. The business underneath has been going the other way. Revenue rose 15% in its last full financial year, or 12% once currency moves are stripped out. Earnings per share rose […]

As Ralph Lauren has outperformed relative to the consumer cyclical sector over the past year, Wall Street analysts maintain a bullish outlook on the stock’s prospects.

The Richemont-owned brand was founded with a cashmere sweater and now offers a full lifestyle collection for men and women.

Even if a company is profitable, it doesn’t always mean it’s a great investment. Some struggle to maintain growth, face looming threats, or fail to reinvest wisely, limiting their future potential.

Ralph Lauren has delivered a powerful long term share price run, and the question now is whether the current US$346.06 quote is adequately backed by the cash the business can generate. For anyone looking at the stock today, the key issue is how that price lines up against the intrinsic value implied by its future cash flows. Over the past 5 years, Ralph Lauren has returned 219.6%, which puts a lot of expectations about the brand's cash generation into the current market story. The business...