Oppenheimer Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Lennox International (NYSE:LII) Stock

Lennox International (NYSE:LII - Free Report) had its price target increased by Oppenheimer from $600.00 to $650.00 in a research report sent to investors on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have an outperform rating on the construction company's stock.

Other analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Robert W. Baird cut their price objective on shares of Lennox International from $608.00 to $600.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Lennox International from $500.00 to $550.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 1st. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Lennox International from $702.00 to $696.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on shares of Lennox International from $619.00 to $691.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Finally, UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of Lennox International from $625.00 to $570.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $604.31.

Lennox International Trading Down 0.4%

Shares of LII traded down $2.23 on Thursday, reaching $609.62. 221,551 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 364,288. The stock has a market capitalization of $21.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 1.13. Lennox International has a 12 month low of $500.10 and a 12 month high of $682.50. The company has a current ratio of 1.43, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $576.88 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $584.28.

Lennox International (NYSE:LII - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The construction company reported $3.37 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.25 by $0.12. The company had revenue of $1.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1 billion. Lennox International had a net margin of 14.96% and a return on equity of 106.05%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $3.47 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Lennox International will post 22.94 earnings per share for the current year.

Lennox International Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 30th were issued a $1.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 30th. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.85%. This is a boost from Lennox International's previous quarterly dividend of $1.15. Lennox International's dividend payout ratio is 23.17%.

Lennox International declared that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Thursday, May 22nd that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the construction company to reacquire up to 5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity at Lennox International

In other news, CAO Chris Kosel sold 509 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $568.05, for a total value of $289,137.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 1,582 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $898,655.10. This represents a 24.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 9.73% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its holdings in Lennox International by 50.8% in the 4th quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 98 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $60,000 after buying an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Lennox International by 8.9% during the 1st quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 576 shares of the construction company's stock worth $325,000 after buying an additional 47 shares during the period. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. grew its position in Lennox International by 175.9% in the 2nd quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 80 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares during the period. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC grew its position in Lennox International by 7.7% in the 4th quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 853 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $534,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares during the period. Finally, City Holding Co. acquired a new stake in Lennox International in the 1st quarter valued at $35,000. Institutional investors own 67.07% of the company's stock.

Lennox International Company Profile

Lennox International Inc, together with its subsidiaries, designs, manufactures, and markets a range of products for the heating, ventilation, air conditioning, and refrigeration markets in the United States, Canada, and internationally. The Home Comfort Solutions segment provides furnaces, air conditioners, heat pumps, packaged heating and cooling systems, indoor air quality equipment, comfort control products, and replacement parts and supplies; residential heating, ventilation, cooling equipment, and air conditioning; and evaporator coils and unit heaters under Lennox, Dave Lennox Signature Collection, Armstrong Air, Ducane, AirEase, Concord, MagicPak, Advanced Distributor Products, Allied, Elite Series, Merit Series, Comfort Sync, Healthy Climate, iComfort, ComfortSense, and Lennox Stores name.