Lsb Industries (NYSE:LXU) Stock Price Up 8.2% – Here’s What Happened

Lsb Industries Inc. (NYSE:LXU)’s stock price shot up 8.2% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $15.50 and last traded at $15.61. 688,932 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 33% from the average session volume of 1,032,648 shares. The stock had previously closed at $14.43.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

LXU has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Weiss Ratings raised Lsb Industries from a “sell (d-)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. Zacks Research lowered shares of Lsb Industries from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $9.75 target price (up from $9.50) on shares of Lsb Industries in a report on Monday, January 12th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Lsb Industries from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 21st. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Lsb Industries from $11.00 to $13.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $11.94.

Lsb Industries Stock Performance

The firm has a market cap of $1.13 billion, a PE ratio of 46.41 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a quick ratio of 2.61, a current ratio of 2.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $11.36 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $9.64.

Lsb Industries (NYSE:LXU) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The conglomerate reported $0.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.18 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $165.05 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $153.88 million. Lsb Industries had a return on equity of 4.90% and a net margin of 4.00%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Lsb Industries Inc. will post -0.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Lsb Industries news, Director Barry H. Golsen sold 17,813 shares of Lsb Industries stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $10.04, for a total value of $178,842.52. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Kristy Carver sold 19,550 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $9.99, for a total transaction of $195,304.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 52,613 shares in the company, valued at approximately $525,603.87. The trade was a 27.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 387,113 shares of company stock worth $3,731,647. Insiders own 4.30% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lsb Industries

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Royal Bank of Canada grew its holdings in Lsb Industries by 7.4% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 38,916 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $257,000 after purchasing an additional 2,692 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC purchased a new position in shares of Lsb Industries during the 1st quarter valued at $697,000. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Lsb Industries by 1.1% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,261,020 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $9,838,000 after acquiring an additional 14,313 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its stake in shares of Lsb Industries by 22.3% during the 2nd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 178,493 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $1,392,000 after acquiring an additional 32,516 shares during the period. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers increased its holdings in Lsb Industries by 1.8% in the 2nd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 89,804 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $700,000 after acquiring an additional 1,616 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.67% of the company’s stock.

About Lsb Industries

LSB Industries, Inc (NYSE: LXU) is an Oklahoma City–based manufacturer of chemical products serving the agricultural, industrial and defense markets. The company operates primarily through two segments: Fertilizer Solutions and Commodities Solutions. Through its Fertilizer Solutions segment, LSB produces primary nitrogen products—including anhydrous ammonia and technical-grade ammonium nitrate—that are sold to fertilizer distributors and agricultural retailers across North America. Its Commodities Solutions segment manufactures and sells nitric acid, sodium nitrate and other nitrate-based compounds for industrial applications such as mining, water treatment and specialty chemical production, as well as defense-related formulations used in munitions and pyrotechnics.

Incorporated in 1969, LSB Industries has grown from a single production site to multiple manufacturing facilities strategically located in the central United States.