LSI Industries (NASDAQ:LYTS) Reaches New 1-Year High – Still a Buy?

LSI Industries Inc. (NASDAQ:LYTS) shares hit a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $27.29 and last traded at $27.1750, with a volume of 50007 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $25.99.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have issued reports on LYTS. Oppenheimer began coverage on shares of LSI Industries in a research note on Tuesday, June 9th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $30.00 price objective on the stock. Zacks Research upgraded shares of LSI Industries from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, March 30th. Weiss Ratings lowered LSI Industries from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of LSI Industries from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 16th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $28.75.

LSI Industries Trading Up 2.9%

The firm has a market cap of $982.14 million, a P/E ratio of 35.66 and a beta of 0.53. The business has a 50 day moving average of $23.56 and a two-hundred day moving average of $21.30. The company has a current ratio of 1.48, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58.

LSI Industries (NASDAQ:LYTS) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The construction company reported $0.06 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.40 by ($0.34). The company had revenue of $150.53 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $163.53 million. LSI Industries had a return on equity of 8.90% and a net margin of 3.91%. Analysts predict that LSI Industries Inc. will post 0.78 earnings per share for the current year.

LSI Industries Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 12th. Investors of record on Monday, May 4th were paid a $0.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 4th. This represents a $0.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. LSI Industries’s dividend payout ratio is 26.67%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Institutional Trading of LSI Industries

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of LSI Industries by 26.7% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 61,107 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,039,000 after acquiring an additional 12,876 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its holdings in LSI Industries by 6.9% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 17,165 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $292,000 after buying an additional 1,113 shares during the period. Jane Street Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of LSI Industries in the first quarter worth approximately $560,000. Strs Ohio bought a new stake in shares of LSI Industries in the 1st quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP boosted its position in LSI Industries by 133.3% during the second quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 5,611 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $95,000 after acquiring an additional 3,206 shares during the last quarter. 73.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About LSI Industries

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.