Phillips-Van Heusen Corp. (PVH) will probably only add to that Hilfiger rivalry with Polo Ralph Lauren Corporation (NYSE: RL).  With Ralph Lauren having a market cap of nearly $8 billion, the company has always been a wild-card acquirer.  And its most recent guidance failed to win over Wall Street and investors.  Still, it seems as though many think that an acquisition of a smaller growth brand may represent brand dilution or may become a distraction for a model that obviously worked well through time for the Ralph Lauren and Polo brands.

Aeropostale, Inc. (NYSE: ARO) is a name which has been rumored as being a a target, although never with much conviction.  And a $2.7 billion market cap and targeted young audience makes the company a risk for any buyer that does not specialize in that market.  We’d throw out a ditto for Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE: ANF) with its focus, and note that it is even larger and worth about $3.8 billion.  These two are likely not going to be targets of a buyout.

Oxford Industries Inc. (NASDAQ: OXM) is a name that comes up occasionally in M&A circles.  This issue is that this may be more of having attractive brands a new owner would to own rather than being a company that wants to sell.  It houses the Tommy Bahama and Ben Sherman brands as well as others.  With shares being down a fraction today, Oxford is not showing any hint of a deal coming its way despite it only having a market cap of $350 million or so.

Lululemon Athletica Inc. (NASDAQ: LULU) has been rumored as a buyout candidate before, but valuation and founder-insider controls have made this harder to be true.  A $2.5 billion market cap is most likely going to push away many buyers even if the company became for sale and even if a significant pullback came.

The big player that is a dream-team target is Under Armour, Inc. (NYSE: UA).  The company is a small threat to Nike, and its stock has stagnated unless you compare it to the market lows of last year.  Rumors, or ‘rumours’ if you want to mirror its Old English spelling of ‘armor,’ have been out there before.  The biggest problem is that it has insiders with control and it seems as though it would take a high premium to make management jump at anyone with cash.  That being said, its $1.4 billion market cap might not be anywhere near what it would take to own that brand.