Lake Street Capital Begins Coverage on American Vanguard (NYSE:AVD)

Lake Street Capital began coverage on shares of American Vanguard (NYSE:AVD) in a research note issued to investors on Monday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The brokerage issued a buy rating and a $14.00 price objective on the basic materials company’s stock.

A number of other equities analysts also recently weighed in on the company. Loop Capital boosted their target price on American Vanguard from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research note on Monday, April 15th. StockNews.com downgraded American Vanguard from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note on Friday, May 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $16.67.

American Vanguard Stock Performance

Shares of AVD opened at $9.14 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a current ratio of 2.29. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $8.76 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $10.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $255.83 million, a P/E ratio of 35.15 and a beta of 0.91. American Vanguard has a 52 week low of $7.94 and a 52 week high of $18.26.

American Vanguard (NYSE:AVD) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 9th. The basic materials company reported $0.09 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.08 by $0.01. American Vanguard had a return on equity of 2.20% and a net margin of 1.22%. The firm had revenue of $135.14 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $141.20 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.07 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that American Vanguard will post 0.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Vanguard Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 26th were given a dividend of $0.03 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, June 26th. This represents a $0.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.31%. American Vanguard’s dividend payout ratio is currently 46.15%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Ulrich Trogele bought 18,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 16th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $8.75 per share, for a total transaction of $159,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 209,876 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,836,415. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other news, Director Steven D. Macicek purchased 8,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 15th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $9.01 per share, with a total value of $76,585.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 10,044 shares in the company, valued at approximately $90,496.44. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Ulrich Trogele bought 18,200 shares of American Vanguard stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 16th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $8.75 per share, for a total transaction of $159,250.00. Following the purchase, the insider now owns 209,876 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,836,415. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 10.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AVD. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio boosted its holdings in shares of American Vanguard by 288.1% during the third quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 12,062 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $132,000 after purchasing an additional 8,954 shares during the period. CWM LLC lifted its holdings in American Vanguard by 492.4% in the fourth quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,340 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 1,945 shares during the period. Bfsg LLC purchased a new stake in American Vanguard in the fourth quarter worth about $98,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its holdings in American Vanguard by 251.5% in the fourth quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 178,038 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,953,000 after buying an additional 127,386 shares during the period. Finally, Gladius Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in American Vanguard in the fourth quarter worth about $37,000. Institutional investors own 79.04% of the company’s stock.

About American Vanguard

American Vanguard Corporation, through its subsidiaries, develops, manufactures, and markets specialty chemicals for agricultural, commercial, and consumer uses in the United States and internationally. It manufactures and formulates chemicals, including insecticides, fungicides, herbicides, soil health, plant nutrition, molluscicides, growth regulators, soil fumigants, and biorationals in liquid, powder, and granular forms for crops, turf and ornamental plants, and human and animal health protection.