Lennox International, Inc. (NYSE:LII) Given Average Rating of “Hold” by Analysts

Lennox International, Inc. (NYSE:LII) has been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the fourteen ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $583.71.

LII has been the topic of a number of research reports. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Lennox International from $550.00 to $500.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Oppenheimer raised shares of Lennox International from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $600.00 price target for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of Lennox International from $625.00 to $570.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of Lennox International from $702.00 to $696.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, Robert W. Baird cut their price target on Lennox International from $608.00 to $600.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 24th.

Lennox International Price Performance

Shares of LII opened at $547.04 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $19.41 billion, a PE ratio of 24.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 1.14. Lennox International has a 52-week low of $500.10 and a 52-week high of $682.50. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $560.54 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $592.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a current ratio of 1.43.

Lennox International (NYSE:LII) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The construction company reported $3.37 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.25 by $0.12. Lennox International had a net margin of 14.96% and a return on equity of 106.05%. The business had revenue of $1.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $3.47 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 2.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Lennox International will post 22.94 EPS for the current year.

Lennox International declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Thursday, May 22nd that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the construction company to buy up to 5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Lennox International Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Friday, May 30th will be given a dividend of $1.30 per share. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.95%. This is an increase from Lennox International’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.15. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 30th. Lennox International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 20.50%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CAO Chris Kosel sold 509 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $568.05, for a total transaction of $289,137.45. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 1,582 shares in the company, valued at $898,655.10. This trade represents a 24.34% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 9.73% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lennox International

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC bought a new position in Lennox International in the 4th quarter worth approximately $322,000. Private Trust Co. NA lifted its position in shares of Lennox International by 62.5% during the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 117 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $71,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp boosted its holdings in shares of Lennox International by 487.7% in the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 429 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $261,000 after acquiring an additional 356 shares during the period. Catalyst Funds Management Pty Ltd grew its position in shares of Lennox International by 200.0% in the fourth quarter. Catalyst Funds Management Pty Ltd now owns 900 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $548,000 after purchasing an additional 600 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sciencast Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Lennox International in the fourth quarter valued at $1,582,000. 67.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Lennox International Company Profile

Lennox International Inc, together with its subsidiaries, designs, manufactures, and markets a range of products for the heating, ventilation, air conditioning, and refrigeration markets in the United States, Canada, and internationally. The Home Comfort Solutions segment provides furnaces, air conditioners, heat pumps, packaged heating and cooling systems, indoor air quality equipment, comfort control products, and replacement parts and supplies; residential heating, ventilation, cooling equipment, and air conditioning; and evaporator coils and unit heaters under Lennox, Dave Lennox Signature Collection, Armstrong Air, Ducane, AirEase, Concord, MagicPak, Advanced Distributor Products, Allied, Elite Series, Merit Series, Comfort Sync, Healthy Climate, iComfort, ComfortSense, and Lennox Stores name.