Investors Purchase High Volume of Call Options on Lsb Industries (NYSE:LXU)

Lsb Industries Inc. (NYSE:LXU) saw some unusual options trading activity on Friday. Stock traders bought 4,882 call options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 776% compared to the typical volume of 557 call options.

Lsb Industries Trading Up 1.7%

LXU traded up $0.24 on Friday, hitting $14.20. The company had a trading volume of 1,026,756 shares, compared to its average volume of 653,176. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $9.82 and its 200 day moving average price is $9.02. Lsb Industries has a 1 year low of $4.88 and a 1 year high of $14.65. The company has a current ratio of 2.78, a quick ratio of 2.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85. The firm has a market cap of $1.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.77 and a beta of 0.66.

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Barry H. Golsen sold 118,953 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $9.19, for a total value of $1,093,178.07. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 96,773 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $889,343.87. This trade represents a 55.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Kristy Carver sold 19,550 shares of Lsb Industries stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $9.99, for a total value of $195,304.50. Following 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 position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 471,501 shares of company stock worth $4,493,971 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 4.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Kennedy Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Lsb Industries by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Kennedy Capital Management LLC now owns 277,355 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $2,358,000 after buying an additional 1,210 shares in the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers boosted its holdings in Lsb Industries by 1.8% during the 2nd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 89,804 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $700,000 after acquiring an additional 1,616 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC grew its position in Lsb Industries by 8.5% in the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 21,573 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $183,000 after acquiring an additional 1,692 shares in the last quarter. First Bank & Trust grew its position in Lsb Industries by 13.4% in the 3rd quarter. First Bank & Trust now owns 16,239 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $128,000 after acquiring an additional 1,922 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC increased its stake in Lsb Industries by 21.0% during the third quarter. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC now owns 12,354 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $97,000 after purchasing an additional 2,148 shares during the period. 73.67% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have issued reports on the company. Zacks Research downgraded Lsb Industries from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $9.75 price objective (up from $9.50) on shares of Lsb Industries in a report on Monday, January 12th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Lsb Industries from a “sell (d-)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Monday. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their target price on shares of Lsb Industries from $11.00 to $13.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 27th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Lsb Industries from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Lsb Industries currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $10.92.

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.