Lsb Industries (NYSE:LXU) Price Target Raised to $16.50

Key Points

• UBS raised its price target on LSB Industries from $9.75 to $16.50 while maintaining a "neutral" rating; MarketBeat's consensus remains a "Hold" with an average target of $13.63.
• Shares jumped 7.8% to $17.04 after the company beat quarterly estimates (EPS $0.22 vs. $0.18; revenue $165.05M vs. $153.88M); the stock trades near its 52‑week high with a $1.22B market cap and a P/E of 50.35.
• Insiders have been net sellers, disposing of 387,113 shares (~$3.73M) in the last 90 days, while institutional ownership is high at about 73.7% following several notable institutional stake increases.

Lsb Industries (NYSE:LXU - Get Free Report) had its target price raised by stock analysts at UBS Group from $9.75 to $16.50 in a research note issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a "neutral" rating on the conglomerate's stock. UBS Group's price objective indicates a potential downside of 3.15% from the stock's previous close.

LXU has been the subject of a number of other reports. Weiss Ratings upgraded Lsb Industries from a "sell (d-)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a report on Monday, March 2nd. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Lsb Industries from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Lsb Industries from $11.00 to $13.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, February 27th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of Lsb Industries from $11.00 to $15.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 12th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Lsb Industries from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, March 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $13.63.

Lsb Industries Trading Up 7.8%

Shares of NYSE:LXU traded up $1.23 during trading on Thursday, reaching $17.04. The stock had a trading volume of 1,654,909 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,092,375. Lsb Industries has a 52 week low of $4.88 and a 52 week high of $17.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 2.61 and a current ratio of 2.78. The firm's fifty day moving average is $11.36 and its 200 day moving average is $9.64. The stock has a market cap of $1.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 50.35 and a beta of 0.66.

Lsb Industries (NYSE:LXU - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The conglomerate reported $0.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.18 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $165.05 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $153.88 million. Lsb Industries had a net margin of 4.00% and a return on equity of 4.90%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Lsb Industries will post -0.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Lsb Industries news, CFO Cheryl Maguire sold 7,551 shares of Lsb Industries stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $10.00, for a total transaction of $75,510.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 200,719 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,007,190. The trade was a 3.63% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Kristy Carver sold 19,550 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $9.99, for a total transaction of $195,304.50. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 52,613 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $525,603.87. The trade was a 27.09% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 387,113 shares of company stock valued at $3,731,647. Corporate insiders own 4.30% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lsb Industries

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LXU. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL lifted its position in shares of Lsb Industries by 581.8% during the 4th quarter. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL now owns 342,894 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $2,915,000 after buying an additional 292,599 shares in the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership bought a new position in shares of Lsb Industries in the second quarter valued at approximately $1,694,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its position in shares of Lsb Industries by 104.8% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 365,601 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $2,881,000 after acquiring an additional 187,108 shares during the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Lsb Industries by 301.7% during the fourth quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 205,236 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $1,745,000 after acquiring an additional 154,150 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its holdings in Lsb Industries by 825.5% during the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 166,639 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $1,313,000 after acquiring an additional 148,634 shares during the period. 73.67% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Lsb Industries

LSB Industries, Inc NYSE: LXU is an Oklahoma City–based manufacturer of chemical products serving the agricultural, industrial and defense markets. The company operates primarily through two segments: Fertilizer Solutions and Commodities Solutions. Through its Fertilizer Solutions segment, LSB produces primary nitrogen products—including anhydrous ammonia and technical-grade ammonium nitrate—that are sold to fertilizer distributors and agricultural retailers across North America. Its Commodities Solutions segment manufactures and sells nitric acid, sodium nitrate and other nitrate-based compounds for industrial applications such as mining, water treatment and specialty chemical production, as well as defense-related formulations used in munitions and pyrotechnics.

Incorporated in 1969, LSB Industries has grown from a single production site to multiple manufacturing facilities strategically located in the central United States.

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