KTB

What You Should Know

Kontoor Brands, Inc. is a global apparel company that designs and sells denim, casual, and outdoor/workwear under the Wrangler and Helly Hansen brands (the Lee brand is being divested). Selling clothing is a permissible activity, so the business-activity screen passes, and basic denim and outdoor apparel carry no modesty concern of the kind that affects intimate-apparel names. The concern is financial: Kontoor funded its 2025 acquisition of Helly Hansen with roughly $1 billion of new long-term debt, ending the year with a materially higher debt balance and a net leverage ratio around 2x, so its total-debt-to-market-cap ratio should be confirmed against the 33% threshold using the latest filings — the deciding screen. The receivables ratio and any interest income should be checked against their thresholds and the corresponding portion of returns purified. Because the added acquisition leverage keeps the debt screen borderline, KTB is generally screened as doubtful.