Daktronics (NASDAQ:DAKT) Shares Gap Up – Here’s Why

Daktronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:DAKT)’s share price gapped up prior to trading on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $16.92, but opened at $17.60. Daktronics shares last traded at $17.60, with a volume of 91,305 shares changing hands.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. StockNews.com raised Daktronics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Craig Hallum began coverage on Daktronics in a research report on Wednesday. They issued a “buy” rating and a $26.00 price target for the company.

Daktronics Stock Performance

The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $16.56 and its 200 day moving average price is $14.73. The company has a market cap of $828.13 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 70.49, a P/E/G ratio of 0.58 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a current ratio of 2.35, a quick ratio of 1.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40.

Daktronics (NASDAQ:DAKT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, December 4th. The technology company reported $0.08 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.17 by ($0.09). Daktronics had a return on equity of 19.61% and a net margin of 3.62%. On average, analysts expect that Daktronics, Inc. will post 0.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Daktronics

In other Daktronics news, Director John Patrick Friel sold 2,244 shares of Daktronics stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.17, for a total value of $40,773.48. Following the transaction, the director now owns 87,573 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,591,201.41. The trade was a 2.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Reece A. Kurtenbach sold 8,048 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.75, for a total value of $150,900.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 469,727 shares in the company, valued at $8,807,381.25. The trade was a 1.68 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 8.10% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Daktronics

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Progeny 3 Inc. grew its position in Daktronics by 140.0% during the second quarter. Progeny 3 Inc. now owns 1,794,908 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $25,039,000 after purchasing an additional 1,047,156 shares in the last quarter. Duquesne Family Office LLC raised its holdings in shares of Daktronics by 20.3% during the second quarter. Duquesne Family Office LLC now owns 2,493,605 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $34,786,000 after acquiring an additional 420,161 shares in the last quarter. Foundry Partners LLC acquired a new position in Daktronics in the 3rd quarter worth about $4,101,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Daktronics by 76.5% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 451,873 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $5,834,000 after acquiring an additional 195,830 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC increased its stake in shares of Daktronics by 5,451.9% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 48,690 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $629,000 after purchasing an additional 47,813 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 61.69% of the company’s stock.

About Daktronics

Daktronics, Inc designs, manufactures, and sells electronic scoreboards, programmable display systems and large screen video displays for sporting, commercial, and transportation applications in the United States and internationally. It operates through Commercial, Live Events, High School Park and Recreation, Transportation, and International segments.