Liquidity Services (NASDAQ:LQDT) Trading Down 6.8% – What’s Next?

Shares of Liquidity Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:LQDT) dropped 6.8% during trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $34.55 and last traded at $34.77. Approximately 246,078 shares changed hands during trading, an increase of 2% from the average daily volume of 240,649 shares. The stock had previously closed at $37.30.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently issued reports on LQDT shares. StockNews.com upgraded Liquidity Services from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, December 21st. Craig Hallum increased their price objective on shares of Liquidity Services from $28.00 to $37.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Barrington Research reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $27.00 target price on shares of Liquidity Services in a report on Tuesday, December 10th.

Liquidity Services Stock Performance

The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $31.43 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $25.47. The firm has a market cap of $1.07 billion, a PE ratio of 55.00 and a beta of 1.37.

Liquidity Services (NASDAQ:LQDT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, December 12th. The business services provider reported $0.32 earnings per share for the quarter. Liquidity Services had a net margin of 5.50% and a return on equity of 18.99%. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.26 EPS.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP John Daunt sold 4,546 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.68, for a total transaction of $144,017.28. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 43,309 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,372,029.12. This trade represents a 9.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Edward Kolodzieski sold 26,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, December 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.29, for a total value of $813,540.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 19,229 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $601,675.41. This represents a 57.49 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 101,668 shares of company stock worth $3,331,558 in the last ninety days. 28.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Liquidity Services

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Liquidity Services by 9.5% during the 3rd quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 881,234 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $20,092,000 after buying an additional 76,794 shares during the period. State Street Corp grew its position in shares of Liquidity Services by 1.7% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 852,306 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $19,433,000 after purchasing an additional 13,947 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Liquidity Services by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 515,584 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $11,757,000 after buying an additional 2,392 shares in the last quarter. Rice Hall James & Associates LLC raised its stake in Liquidity Services by 1.3% during the third quarter. Rice Hall James & Associates LLC now owns 367,302 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $8,374,000 after purchasing an additional 4,838 shares during the period. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its holdings in Liquidity Services by 4.9% in the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 237,725 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $5,420,000 after acquiring an additional 11,022 shares during the last quarter. 71.15% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Liquidity Services

Liquidity Services, Inc provides e-commerce marketplaces, self-directed auction listing tools, and value-added services in the United States and internationally. The company operates through four segments: GovDeals, Retail Supply Chain Group (RSCG), Capital Assets Group (CAG), and Machinio. Its marketplaces include liquidation.com that enable corporations to sell surplus and salvage consumer goods and retail capital assets; GovDeals marketplace, which provides self-directed service solutions in which sellers list their own assets that enables local and state government entities, and commercial businesses located in the United States and Canada to sell surplus and salvage assets; and AllSurplus, a centralized marketplace that connects global buyer base with assets from across the network of marketplaces in a single destination.