StockNews.com Downgrades Lifetime Brands (NASDAQ:LCUT) to Hold

StockNews.com downgraded shares of Lifetime Brands (NASDAQ:LCUT - Free Report) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note released on Monday.

A number of other brokerages have also weighed in on LCUT. DA Davidson dropped their price target on Lifetime Brands from $6.75 to $6.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Canaccord Genuity Group decreased their price target on Lifetime Brands from $6.00 to $5.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 12th.

Lifetime Brands Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ LCUT traded down $0.05 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $3.28. 27,208 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 69,390. Lifetime Brands has a 1 year low of $2.89 and a 1 year high of $11.68. The stock has a market capitalization of $73.52 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.48 and a beta of 1.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 2.36. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $4.19 and a 200 day moving average of $5.20.

Lifetime Brands (NASDAQ:LCUT - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The company reported ($0.25) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.14) by ($0.11). Lifetime Brands had a positive return on equity of 3.13% and a negative net margin of 3.19%. The firm had revenue of $140.09 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $144.86 million. On average, analysts forecast that Lifetime Brands will post 0.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Lifetime Brands Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 1st were issued a dividend of $0.0425 per share. This represents a $0.17 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.18%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 1st. Lifetime Brands's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -27.87%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lifetime Brands

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Jane Street Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Lifetime Brands in the 3rd quarter valued at about $67,000. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in Lifetime Brands in the first quarter valued at approximately $82,000. Corton Capital Inc. purchased a new stake in Lifetime Brands in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $122,000. Barclays PLC raised its stake in shares of Lifetime Brands by 38.7% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 19,016 shares of the company's stock worth $124,000 after purchasing an additional 5,302 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC raised its stake in shares of Lifetime Brands by 84.9% during the fourth quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 21,625 shares of the company's stock worth $128,000 after purchasing an additional 9,932 shares during the last quarter. 40.62% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Lifetime Brands

Lifetime Brands, Inc designs, sources, and sells branded kitchenware, tableware, and other products for use in the home in the worldwide. The company provides kitchenware products, including kitchen tools and gadgets, cutlery, kitchen scales, thermometers, cutting boards, shears, cookware, pantryware, spice racks, and bakeware; and tableware products comprising dinnerware, stemware, flatware, and giftware.