Lakeland Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:LAKE) Short Interest Up 36.0% in December

Lakeland Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:LAKE) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest in December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 168,400 shares, an increase of 36.0% from the December 15th total of 123,800 shares. Currently, 2.4% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 46,400 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.6 days.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on LAKE. Roth Mkm boosted their price target on shares of Lakeland Industries from $27.00 to $29.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Lakeland Industries from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 29th.

Lakeland Industries Stock Performance

Shares of Lakeland Industries stock opened at $26.03 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $192.88 million, a PE ratio of -289.22 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a quick ratio of 1.77, a current ratio of 4.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. Lakeland Industries has a 52 week low of $15.10 and a 52 week high of $26.64. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $23.28 and its 200-day simple moving average is $22.26.

Lakeland Industries Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 22nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th were given a $0.03 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 15th. This represents a $0.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.46%. Lakeland Industries’s payout ratio is currently -133.33%.

Insider Transactions at Lakeland Industries

In related news, Director Nikki Hamblin purchased 2,220 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 23rd. The stock was purchased at an average price of $23.08 per share, with a total value of $51,237.60. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 15,862 shares in the company, valued at $366,094.96. This trade represents a 16.27 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO James M. Jenkins acquired 990 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, December 30th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $25.35 per share, for a total transaction of $25,096.50. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 990 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $25,096.50. The trade was a ∞ increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 4.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Barclays PLC acquired a new position in shares of Lakeland Industries in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $306,000. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in Lakeland Industries by 1.6% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 74,273 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,493,000 after purchasing an additional 1,177 shares during the period. High Falls Advisors Inc lifted its stake in Lakeland Industries by 46.2% during the third quarter. High Falls Advisors Inc now owns 28,472 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $572,000 after purchasing an additional 9,000 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its stake in Lakeland Industries by 4.6% during the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 12,129 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $244,000 after purchasing an additional 536 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Royce & Associates LP boosted its position in shares of Lakeland Industries by 2.5% during the third quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 730,220 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $14,677,000 after buying an additional 17,579 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.69% of the company’s stock.

Lakeland Industries Company Profile

Lakeland Industries, Inc manufactures and sells industrial protective clothing and accessories for the industrial and public protective clothing market worldwide. It offers firefighting and heat protective apparel to protect against fire; high-end chemical protective suits to provide protection from highly concentrated, toxic and/or lethal chemicals, and biological toxins; and limited use/disposable protective clothing, such as coveralls, laboratory coats, shirts, pants, hoods, aprons, sleeves, arm guards, caps, and smocks.