Thursday, December 8, 2016

Daktronics, Inc. (DAKT) is “One to Watch”

Daktronics, Inc. (NASDAQ: DAKT), a company that designs, manufactures, and sells electronic display systems and related products on a global scale, has been the topic of several reports since the company announced breaking into a new 52-week high on November 25, 2016. Equities.com (http://dtn.fm/hgd4G) announced shares for the company reached a peak of $10.78, closing at $10.64 after opening at $10.46, a move of over 2% is just one day.

As a result, Zacks Investment Research upgraded the company from a ‘Hold’ rating to a ‘Strong Buy’, with a target price of $12 per share. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a ‘Buy’ rating, with a target price of $11, up from $9.50 previously. Lastly, The Street raised the company’s rating from a ‘Hold’ rating to a ‘Buy’ rating.

Daktronics, Inc. released its second quarter fiscal 2017 results on November 22, 2016, reporting earnings of $170 million, over $8 million more than estimates set by analysts. The revenue for this quarter was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year, and DAKT reported a return on equity of just under 5% with a net margin of 1.64%, all according to The Cerbat Gem Market News and Analysis (http://dtn.fm/G5mK3).

In addition, various hedge funds have increased their stakes in the company. BlackRock Fund Advisors and BlackRock Institutional Trust Company N.A. have both increased their stakes in Daktronics, by 11% and 0.9%, respectively, giving them ownership of more than two million and 900,000 shares each. Vanguard Group, Inc. and Dimensional Fund Advisors LP also increased their stakes, giving them ownership of more than 1.8 million shares each. Lastly, State Street Corp. increased its stake in DAKT, giving it stock worth over $4.5 million. As a result, institutional investors and hedge funds now own over 46% of Daktronics stock.

On December 2, 2016, Daktronics announced that its board of directors approved a regular quarterly cash dividend of $0.07 per share, payable on December 23. This announcement was made very shortly after the company was awarded a multi-million dollar project by the state of Nevada, project NEON, which involves widening Interstate 15, the busiest road in Nevada.

For more information, visit the company’s website at www.daktronics.com

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