AltraVue Capital LLC Purchases 106,693 Shares of LSI Industries Inc. $LYTS

Key Points

• AltraVue Capital LLC increased its stake in LSI Industries by 8% in the fourth quarter, buying 106,693 additional shares and bringing its total holding to 1,445,833 shares worth about $26.5 million.
• Insiders have been selling shares, including EVP Thomas A. Caneris and Director Wilfred T. Ogara, with insiders selling 256,173 shares worth $6.2 million over the last 90 days.
• LSI Industries missed quarterly earnings estimates, reporting $0.06 EPS versus $0.40 expected and revenue of $150.5 million versus $163.5 million expected, even as analysts still rate the stock a Moderate Buy with an average target price of $28.33.

AltraVue Capital LLC boosted its position in LSI Industries Inc. (NASDAQ:LYTS - Free Report) by 8.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,445,833 shares of the construction company's stock after acquiring an additional 106,693 shares during the quarter. LSI Industries accounts for 2.2% of AltraVue Capital LLC's holdings, making the stock its 17th largest holding. AltraVue Capital LLC owned 4.65% of LSI Industries worth $26,488,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Royce & Associates LP grew its stake in shares of LSI Industries by 50.0% during the third quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 1,045,225 shares of the construction company's stock worth $24,678,000 after buying an additional 348,598 shares during the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans grew its stake in shares of LSI Industries by 70.4% during the fourth quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 742,592 shares of the construction company's stock worth $13,604,000 after buying an additional 306,864 shares during the last quarter. Kennedy Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of LSI Industries by 163.7% during the third quarter. Kennedy Capital Management LLC now owns 339,495 shares of the construction company's stock worth $8,015,000 after buying an additional 210,728 shares during the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its stake in shares of LSI Industries by 402.4% during the third quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 198,433 shares of the construction company's stock worth $4,685,000 after buying an additional 158,934 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in shares of LSI Industries by 266.6% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 157,348 shares of the construction company's stock worth $3,715,000 after buying an additional 114,426 shares during the last quarter. 73.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Thomas A. Caneris sold 109,226 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.29, for a total transaction of $2,653,099.54. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 64,790 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,573,749.10. This represents a 62.77% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Wilfred T. Ogara sold 10,369 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.09, for a total transaction of $249,789.21. Following the sale, the director owned 103,686 shares in the company, valued at $2,497,795.74. The trade was a 9.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 256,173 shares of company stock valued at $6,220,368. Corporate insiders own 7.30% of the company's stock.

LSI Industries Price Performance

LYTS stock opened at $22.55 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $827.81 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.07 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. LSI Industries Inc. has a 12-month low of $16.00 and a 12-month high of $24.99. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $21.83 and its 200 day simple moving average is $20.60.

LSI Industries (NASDAQ:LYTS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The construction company reported $0.06 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.40 by ($0.34). The company had revenue of $150.53 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $163.53 million. LSI Industries had a net margin of 3.91% and a return on equity of 8.90%. On average, analysts expect that LSI Industries Inc. will post 0.81 earnings per share for the current year.

LSI Industries Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 12th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 4th were given a $0.05 dividend. This represents a $0.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 4th. LSI Industries's dividend payout ratio is presently 26.67%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have weighed in on the stock. Wall Street Zen cut shares of LSI Industries from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 16th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of LSI Industries from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of LSI Industries from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, March 30th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $28.33.

LSI Industries Company Profile

LSI Industries, Inc NASDAQ: LYTS is a diversified manufacturer and distributor of lighting, graphics and building technology products. Headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio, the company develops energy-efficient LED lighting systems, branded and digital graphic displays, and integrated building technology solutions. Serving customers in the retail, quick-service and convenience store, industrial, hospitality and transportation markets, LSI combines design, engineering and manufacturing capabilities to address both aesthetic and functional needs.

In its lighting segment, LSI offers interior and exterior LED fixtures, canopy lights, high-bay and low-bay systems, and specialized horticultural grow lights.

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