UPDATE: Morgan Stanley Downgrades V.F. Corporation to Equal-Weight

In a report published Monday, Morgan Stanley downgraded its rating on V.F. Corporation

from Overweight to Equal-Weight and removed its $178 price target. Morgan Stanley noted, “We continue to like VFC's business and believe in a large long-term growth potential; however, are a bit more cautious in the near term and see better risk/reward in RL and PVH at current levels. We believe top-line will slow for VFC in 2013 and cause slower EPS growth due to 1) weaker jeanswear business sales due to a weaker lower/middle income consumer and 2) The North Face and Timberland sales could decelerate driven by yet another warm winter, causing retailers to reconsider their ordering practices. We do not believe there is anything wrong with the The North Face brand but believe retailers could begin ordering the category more cautiously. We also believe Timberland's topline growth will be muted in 2013, as VFC continues to work on reinvigorating the brand for the long term. All of these factors cause us to lower our 2013 top-line revenue growth assumption to 6% and EPS to $10.73, below consensus of $11.00.” V.F. Corporation closed on Friday at $144.17.