JPMorgan Chase & Co. Boosts Position in Myers Industries, Inc. (NYSE:MYE)

JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in shares of Myers Industries, Inc. (NYSE:MYE - Free Report) by 70.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 227,635 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 94,129 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. owned 0.61% of Myers Industries worth $2,513,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Tieton Capital Management LLC increased its position in Myers Industries by 23.3% during the 4th quarter. Tieton Capital Management LLC now owns 304,330 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $3,360,000 after buying an additional 57,410 shares in the last quarter. LPL Financial LLC boosted its stake in Myers Industries by 75.9% in the 4th quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 28,844 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $318,000 after purchasing an additional 12,443 shares in the last quarter. Fox Run Management L.L.C. bought a new stake in Myers Industries during the 4th quarter valued at about $251,000. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS purchased a new position in Myers Industries in the fourth quarter worth about $309,000. Finally, Sei Investments Co. lifted its stake in shares of Myers Industries by 3.8% in the fourth quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 76,288 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $842,000 after buying an additional 2,788 shares in the last quarter. 90.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Myers Industries from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, March 7th.

Myers Industries Stock Up 2.2 %

Shares of MYE stock traded up $0.23 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $10.53. The company's stock had a trading volume of 224,956 shares, compared to its average volume of 334,040. Myers Industries, Inc. has a 52-week low of $9.06 and a 52-week high of $23.05. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $11.06 and a 200 day moving average price of $11.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.80. The stock has a market cap of $392.73 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.07 and a beta of 1.08.

Myers Industries (NYSE:MYE - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 6th. The industrial products company reported $0.19 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.10 by $0.09. Myers Industries had a return on equity of 14.75% and a net margin of 1.88%. The firm had revenue of $203.88 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $203.10 million. Research analysts predict that Myers Industries, Inc. will post 0.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Myers Industries Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 4th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th were paid a $0.135 dividend. This represents a $0.54 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.13%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. Myers Industries's dividend payout ratio is currently 284.21%.

Myers Industries announced that its board has approved a share repurchase plan on Thursday, March 6th that permits the company to buyback $10.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization permits the industrial products company to reacquire up to 2.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually an indication that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

About Myers Industries

Myers Industries, Inc engages in distribution of tire service supplies in Ohio. It operates through two segments, The Material Handling and Distribution. The Material Handling segment offers pallets, small parts bins, bulk shipping containers, and OEM parts, as well as storage and organization, and custom plastic products; and injection molded, rotationally molded or blow molded products, consumer fuel containers and tanks for water, fuel, and waste handling.