VF Corp. downgraded to Neutral from Overweight at Piper Sandler

Piper Sandler analyst Abbie Zvejnieks downgraded VF Corp. to Neutral from Overweight with a price target of $20, down from $28. The analyst believes the Vans turnaround will take longer than originally anticipated, which also impacts VF’s timeline on decreasing leverage. The company’s new styles are now enough to fill the gap left by weakness in its core classics, the analyst tells investors in a research note. The firm believes congestion within the broader U.S. wholesale channel will limit the brand turnaround in the near term “as open to buys are extremely tight meaning retailers will be favoring product that is seeing strong sell through.”