LCI Industries (NYSE:LCII) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

LCI Industries (NYSE:LCII) was the target of a large increase in short interest in the month of August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totalling 2,080,000 shares, an increase of 11.8% from the August 15th total of 1,860,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 253,400 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 8.2 days. Currently, 8.5% of the company’s shares are short sold.

LCI Industries Trading Up 2.2 %

Shares of LCII stock opened at $120.89 on Wednesday. LCI Industries has a 1-year low of $96.18 and a 1-year high of $131.36. The firm has a market cap of $3.08 billion, a PE ratio of 32.85 and a beta of 1.41. The company has a 50-day moving average of $113.36 and a two-hundred day moving average of $110.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 2.82 and a quick ratio of 1.23.

LCI Industries (NYSE:LCII) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 6th. The company reported $2.40 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.16 by $0.24. LCI Industries had a net margin of 3.17% and a return on equity of 8.85%. The firm had revenue of $1.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.05 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.31 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 3.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that LCI Industries will post 6 EPS for the current year.

LCI Industries Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 13th. Investors of record on Friday, August 30th were paid a dividend of $1.05 per share. This represents a $4.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.47%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 30th. LCI Industries’s payout ratio is 114.13%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On LCI Industries

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in LCI Industries by 0.6% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,800,882 shares of the company’s stock valued at $344,677,000 after buying an additional 15,670 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in LCI Industries by 5.9% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,111,900 shares of the company’s stock worth $114,945,000 after purchasing an additional 62,354 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in LCI Industries by 1.8% during the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 609,232 shares of the company’s stock worth $74,972,000 after purchasing an additional 10,539 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. raised its position in LCI Industries by 30.5% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 418,588 shares of the company’s stock valued at $43,274,000 after purchasing an additional 97,877 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in LCI Industries by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 344,869 shares of the company’s stock valued at $43,353,000 after purchasing an additional 3,242 shares in the last quarter. 99.71% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $130.00 target price on shares of LCI Industries in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, LCI Industries presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $109.00.

About LCI Industries

LCI Industries, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures and supplies engineered components for the manufacturers of recreational vehicles (RVs) and adjacent industries in the United States and internationally. It operates through two segments: Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEM) and Aftermarket.