Myers Industries, Inc. (NYSE:MYE) Shares Sold by William Blair Investment Management LLC

William Blair Investment Management LLC reduced its position in shares of Myers Industries, Inc. (NYSE:MYE) by 1.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,310,361 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 20,150 shares during the period. William Blair Investment Management LLC owned 3.52% of Myers Industries worth $14,466,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. State Street Corp increased its holdings in shares of Myers Industries by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,374,246 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $19,176,000 after buying an additional 35,456 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in Myers Industries by 1.1% during the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,034,125 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $14,292,000 after acquiring an additional 11,434 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Myers Industries by 1.3% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 832,442 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $11,507,000 after acquiring an additional 10,666 shares during the last quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Myers Industries by 60.2% during the 3rd quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC now owns 624,010 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $8,624,000 after purchasing an additional 234,390 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP raised its holdings in Myers Industries by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 323,538 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $4,471,000 after buying an additional 7,192 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.82% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, StockNews.com raised shares of Myers Industries from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th.

Myers Industries Stock Up 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE MYE opened at $12.77 on Thursday. Myers Industries, Inc. has a 52-week low of $9.32 and a 52-week high of $23.63. The business’s 50 day moving average is $11.84 and its two-hundred day moving average is $12.21. The firm has a market cap of $476.12 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.40 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.36.

Myers Industries (NYSE:MYE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 6th. The industrial products company reported $0.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.10 by $0.09. Myers Industries had a return on equity of 14.75% and a net margin of 1.88%. The firm had revenue of $203.88 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $203.10 million. Research analysts predict that Myers Industries, Inc. will post 0.95 EPS for the current year.

Myers Industries Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 4th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a dividend of $0.135 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $0.54 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.23%. Myers Industries’s dividend payout ratio is presently 284.21%.

Myers Industries announced that its board has initiated a share buyback program on Thursday, March 6th that allows the company to buyback $10.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the industrial products company to purchase up to 2.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Myers Industries Profile

Myers Industries, Inc engages in distribution of tire service supplies in Ohio. It operates through two segments, The Material Handling and Distribution. The Material Handling segment offers pallets, small parts bins, bulk shipping containers, and OEM parts, as well as storage and organization, and custom plastic products; and injection molded, rotationally molded or blow molded products, consumer fuel containers and tanks for water, fuel, and waste handling.