LSI Industries (NASDAQ:LYTS) Reaches New 52-Week High - Time to Buy?

Key Points

• LSI Industries shares hit a new 52-week high of $26.61 and were recently trading around $26.38, up about 4% on the day.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed but generally positive: the stock has a Moderate Buy consensus with a target price of $28.75, and Oppenheimer recently initiated coverage with an Outperform rating and a $30 target.
• The company missed its latest quarterly earnings and revenue estimates, while insiders have sold shares recently; however, institutional investors still own about 73.9% of the stock and LSI pays a small quarterly dividend yielding about 0.8%.

LSI Industries Inc. (NASDAQ:LYTS - Get Free Report)'s stock price hit a new 52-week high on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $26.61 and last traded at $26.38, with a volume of 178236 shares. The stock had previously closed at $25.35.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

LYTS has been the subject of several recent research reports. Weiss Ratings cut shares of LSI Industries from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Wall Street Zen cut shares of LSI Industries from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 16th. Zacks Research raised shares of LSI Industries from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, March 30th. Finally, Oppenheimer assumed coverage on LSI Industries in a research note on Tuesday, June 9th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $30.00 price objective for the company. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, LSI Industries presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $28.75.

LSI Industries Trading Up 4.0%

The firm has a market capitalization of $968.28 million, a P/E ratio of 35.17 and a beta of 0.53. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $22.85 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $21.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 1.48 and a quick ratio of 0.86.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.40 by ($0.34). LSI Industries had a return on equity of 8.90% and a net margin of 3.91%.The firm had revenue of $150.53 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $163.53 million. Equities research analysts expect that LSI Industries Inc. will post 0.78 EPS for the current year.

LSI Industries Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 12th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 4th were paid a $0.05 dividend. This represents a $0.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 4th. LSI Industries's dividend payout ratio is presently 26.67%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO James E. Galeese sold 136,578 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.29, for a total transaction of $3,317,479.62. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 173,288 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,209,165.52. This trade represents a 44.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Wilfred T. Ogara sold 10,369 shares of LSI Industries stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.09, for a total value of $249,789.21. Following the sale, the director directly owned 103,686 shares in the company, valued at $2,497,795.74. This trade represents a 9.09% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 256,173 shares of company stock worth $6,220,368 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 7.30% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of LSI Industries by 3.2% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,657,475 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $39,133,000 after buying an additional 50,722 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in LSI Industries by 0.5% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,464,122 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $27,232,000 after acquiring an additional 6,783 shares in the last quarter. AltraVue Capital LLC grew its stake in LSI Industries by 8.0% during the fourth quarter. AltraVue Capital LLC now owns 1,445,833 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $26,488,000 after acquiring an additional 106,693 shares in the last quarter. Royce & Associates LP increased its holdings in LSI Industries by 16.4% in the 4th quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 1,216,349 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $22,284,000 after acquiring an additional 171,124 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in LSI Industries by 3.6% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 763,182 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $13,985,000 after acquiring an additional 26,700 shares during the last quarter. 73.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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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