La-Z-Boy (NYSE:LZB) Shares Gap Up Following Dividend Announcement

La-Z-Boy Incorporated (NYSE:LZB) gapped up prior to trading on Wednesday following a dividend announcement from the company. The stock had previously closed at $42.31, but opened at $45.00. La-Z-Boy shares last traded at $42.62, with a volume of 149,340 shares changing hands.

The newly announced dividend which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Thursday, December 5th will be given a dividend of $0.22 per share. This is an increase from La-Z-Boy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.03%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, December 5th. La-Z-Boy’s payout ratio is currently 27.68%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

La-Z-Boy Trading Up 1.4 %

The business’s 50-day moving average is $41.18 and its two-hundred day moving average is $39.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.82 billion, a PE ratio of 15.02 and a beta of 1.29.

La-Z-Boy (NYSE:LZB) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 20th. The company reported $0.62 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.60 by $0.02. La-Z-Boy had a net margin of 6.00% and a return on equity of 12.60%. The firm had revenue of $495.50 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $482.23 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.62 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 2.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that La-Z-Boy Incorporated will post 2.98 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CAO Jennifer Lynn Mccurry sold 4,414 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.31, for a total value of $182,342.34. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 13,236 shares in the company, valued at approximately $546,779.16. This represents a 25.01 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Janet Kerr sold 3,890 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.89, for a total transaction of $159,062.10. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 3,372 shares in the company, valued at approximately $137,881.08. This trade represents a 53.57 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.70% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On La-Z-Boy

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. State Street Corp grew its position in La-Z-Boy by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,672,009 shares of the company’s stock worth $71,779,000 after purchasing an additional 6,925 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its position in La-Z-Boy by 7.5% in the 2nd quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 1,394,677 shares of the company’s stock worth $51,994,000 after purchasing an additional 97,680 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. grew its position in La-Z-Boy by 14.5% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 982,668 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,634,000 after purchasing an additional 124,409 shares during the last quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP grew its position in La-Z-Boy by 9.4% in the 3rd quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP now owns 563,684 shares of the company’s stock worth $24,199,000 after purchasing an additional 48,263 shares during the last quarter. Finally, abrdn plc bought a new position in La-Z-Boy in the 3rd quarter worth about $10,809,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.62% of the company’s stock.

La-Z-Boy Company Profile

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.