La-Z-Boy Incorporated (NYSE:LZB) Sees Large Drop in Short Interest

La-Z-Boy Incorporated (NYSE:LZB) was the recipient of a large drop in short interest in September. As of September 30th, there was short interest totalling 1,890,000 shares, a drop of 27.3% from the September 15th total of 2,600,000 shares. Currently, 4.6% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 506,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.7 days.

La-Z-Boy Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:LZB opened at $39.45 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $41.28 and a 200 day moving average of $38.38. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.65 billion, a PE ratio of 13.94 and a beta of 1.28. La-Z-Boy has a 52-week low of $27.92 and a 52-week high of $45.23.

La-Z-Boy (NYSE:LZB) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 20th. The company reported $0.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.60 by $0.02. La-Z-Boy had a net margin of 5.89% and a return on equity of 12.90%. The firm had revenue of $495.50 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $482.23 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.62 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that La-Z-Boy will post 2.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

La-Z-Boy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 5th were given a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.03%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, September 5th. La-Z-Boy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 28.27%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Sidoti cut shares of La-Z-Boy from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $43.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Wednesday, August 21st.

Insider Transactions at La-Z-Boy

In other La-Z-Boy news, Director Janet Kerr sold 3,890 shares of La-Z-Boy stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.89, for a total transaction of $159,062.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 3,372 shares in the company, valued at approximately $137,881.08. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, Director Janet Kerr sold 3,890 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.89, for a total value of $159,062.10. Following the transaction, the director now owns 3,372 shares in the company, valued at $137,881.08. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CAO Jennifer Lynn Mccurry sold 4,414 shares of La-Z-Boy stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.31, for a total transaction of $182,342.34. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 13,236 shares in the company, valued at $546,779.16. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On La-Z-Boy

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its stake in La-Z-Boy by 14.5% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 982,668 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,634,000 after buying an additional 124,409 shares during the period. Squarepoint Ops LLC boosted its stake in La-Z-Boy by 263.6% during the second quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 150,617 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,615,000 after buying an additional 109,188 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of La-Z-Boy by 7.5% in the second quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 1,394,677 shares of the company’s stock valued at $51,994,000 after purchasing an additional 97,680 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of La-Z-Boy by 125.6% in the second quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 174,249 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,496,000 after purchasing an additional 97,023 shares during the period. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC purchased a new position in shares of La-Z-Boy in the second quarter valued at approximately $3,501,000. 99.62% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About La-Z-Boy

La-Z-Boy Incorporated manufactures, markets, imports, exports, distributes, and retails upholstery furniture products, accessories, and casegoods furniture products in the United States, Canada, and internationally. It operates through Wholesale, Retail, Corporate and Other segments. The Wholesale segment manufactures, and imports upholstered furniture, such as recliners and motion furniture, sofas, loveseats, chairs, sectionals, modulars, ottomans, and sleeper sofas; and imports, distributes, and retails casegoods (wood) furniture, including occasional pieces, bedroom sets, dining room sets, entertainment centers, and occasional pieces.