La-Z-Boy Incorporated (NYSE:LZB) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

La-Z-Boy Incorporated (NYSE:LZB) has received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the five ratings firms that are covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and three have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year target price among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $42.50.

LZB has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. KeyCorp restated an “overweight” rating on shares of La-Z-Boy in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. Sidoti raised La-Z-Boy from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $36.00 to $39.00 in a research report on Wednesday, November 19th. Zacks Research cut La-Z-Boy from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, January 19th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of La-Z-Boy in a research note on Monday, December 22nd. Finally, Needham & Company LLC restated a “buy” rating on shares of La-Z-Boy in a report on Wednesday, December 17th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On La-Z-Boy

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in La-Z-Boy by 75.2% in the 3rd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 755 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 324 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in La-Z-Boy by 290.0% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 901 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 670 shares during the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of La-Z-Boy by 99.0% in the 2nd quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,140 shares of the company’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 567 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC raised its stake in shares of La-Z-Boy by 3,130.8% in the third quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 1,260 shares of the company’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 1,221 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MAI Capital Management lifted its holdings in shares of La-Z-Boy by 2,520.9% during the third quarter. MAI Capital Management now owns 2,385 shares of the company’s stock valued at $82,000 after purchasing an additional 2,294 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.62% of the company’s stock.

La-Z-Boy Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:LZB opened at $38.63 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.72 and a beta of 1.27. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $38.48 and a 200-day moving average price of $36.03. La-Z-Boy has a 52-week low of $29.03 and a 52-week high of $48.13.

La-Z-Boy (NYSE:LZB) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 18th. The company reported $0.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.54 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $522.48 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $517.63 million. La-Z-Boy had a return on equity of 11.19% and a net margin of 4.29%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up .3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.71 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that La-Z-Boy will post 2.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

La-Z-Boy Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, December 4th were issued a $0.242 dividend. This represents a $0.97 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.5%. This is a boost from La-Z-Boy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, December 4th. La-Z-Boy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 44.50%.

La-Z-Boy Company Profile

La-Z-Boy Incorporated (NYSE: LZB) is a leading U.S. manufacturer and marketer of residential furniture, best known for its upholstered recliners, sofas, stationary chairs and sleeper sofas. The company offers a broad range of products in both fabric and leather, complemented by occasional tables, desks, lamps and other home furnishings through its branded retail network.

Founded in 1927 by cousins Edward Knabusch and Edwin Shoemaker in Monroe, Michigan, La-Z-Boy pioneered the modern reclining chair.