Short Interest in Luxfer Holdings PLC (NYSE:LXFR) Rises By 99.3%

Key Points

• Short interest nearly doubled in March, rising 99.3% to 697,107 shares (about 2.6% of shares short) with a days-to-cover of 2.8 based on average daily volume.
• The company pays a quarterly dividend of $0.13 (4.2% yield) but has a payout ratio of 179.31%, indicating the dividend may be unsustainably high relative to earnings.
• Analysts have trended downward (Zacks cut to "strong sell", Wall Street Zen to "hold"), leaving a MarketBeat average rating of "Reduce", while institutional investors own roughly 90.82% of the stock.

Luxfer Holdings PLC (NYSE:LXFR - Get Free Report) saw a significant increase in short interest in the month of March. As of March 13th, there was short interest totaling 697,107 shares, an increase of 99.3% from the February 26th total of 349,787 shares. Approximately 2.6% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 252,366 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.8 days.

Luxfer Price Performance

Shares of NYSE LXFR traded down $0.36 during trading on Thursday, hitting $12.34. The company had a trading volume of 160,635 shares, compared to its average volume of 370,350. The firm has a market capitalization of $328.60 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.01. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $14.00 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $13.55. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 1.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. Luxfer has a fifty-two week low of $9.41 and a fifty-two week high of $16.02.

Luxfer Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 4th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 23rd were paid a dividend of $0.13 per share. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.2%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 23rd. Luxfer's payout ratio is 179.31%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have weighed in on LXFR. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Luxfer from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. Wall Street Zen cut Luxfer from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, February 28th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Luxfer in a research report on Monday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Reduce".

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Luxfer

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Royce & Associates LP boosted its stake in Luxfer by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 1,802,435 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $24,387,000 after purchasing an additional 26,046 shares during the last quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership lifted its stake in shares of Luxfer by 2.3% in the fourth quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership now owns 1,700,550 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $23,008,000 after buying an additional 38,108 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its position in Luxfer by 12.8% during the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,589,528 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $22,094,000 after acquiring an additional 180,199 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in Luxfer by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 918,676 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $12,430,000 after acquiring an additional 26,894 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Earnest Partners LLC grew its stake in Luxfer by 24.9% during the 4th quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 837,433 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $11,330,000 after acquiring an additional 167,023 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.82% of the company's stock.

About Luxfer

Luxfer Gas Cylinders, trading as Luxfer NYSE: LXFR, is a global manufacturer specializing in high-performance, lightweight gas cylinders. The company produces both aluminium and composite cylinders designed to store and transport high-pressure gases for industrial, medical, diving, firefighting and defense applications. Its portfolio includes seamless aluminium cylinders, wrapped composite cylinders and pressure vessel components tailored to meet stringent safety and performance standards.

Founded on more than a century of materials expertise originating from the Luxfer Graphic Magnesium Company established in 1898, Luxfer has evolved into a leader in cylinder innovation.

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