Insiders Selling Shares of 3 Strong Performing Stocks Amid Market Turbulence

Page 2 of 2

John B. Sanfilippo & Son Inc. (NASDAQ:JBSS) saw several insiders unload shares this week, so let’s take a glance at each insider sale. To begin with, Director Ellen C. Taaffe discarded 1,622 shares on Tuesday at a price of $63.26 per share and currently owns 12,021 shares. Senior Vice President Frank S. Pellegrino offloaded 1,250 shares on Wednesday at $64.25 apiece, trimming his overall holding to 18,203 shares. Chief Executive Officer Jeffrey T. Sanfilippo sold 3,000 shares on Tuesday and 5,000 shares on Wednesday at a weighted average price of $63.50. The 5,000-share block was held indirectly through the Jasper and Marian Sanfilippo Family Education Trust. After the recent sale, the CEO holds a direct ownership stake of 20,991 shares. COO and President Jasper Brian Sanfilippo Jr. also jettisoned 3,000 shares on Tuesday for $63.25 each, cutting his stake to 20,991 shares. Last but not least, Director James J. Sanfilippo sold 1,622 shares on the same day at a sale price of $63.25 per share and currently owns a mere 997 shares, as revealed by a Form 4 filing.

The shares of the processor and distributor of peanuts, pecans, cashews, walnuts, almonds and other nuts are 68% in the green over the last year, after having gained 15% so far in 2016. The company reported net sales of $504.8 million for the first 26 weeks of fiscal year 2016 that ended December 24, up by 10.6% year-over-year. The increase was mainly attributable to selling price increases for most nut types (except for peanuts and walnuts) and higher sales volume. It is worth mentioning that the stock trades at a forward P/E multiple of 17.51, which is higher than the average ratio for the companies included in the S&P 500 Index, but below the forward P/E multiple of 20.0 for the Packaged Foods industry. Jim Simons’ Renaissance Technologies owns 372,100 shares of John B. Sanfilippo & Son Inc. (NASDAQ:JBSS) as of the end of the third quarter.

Follow Sanfilippo John B & Son Inc (NASDAQ:JBSS)

Let’s wrap up our discussion by looking at LSI Industries Inc. (NASDAQ:LYTS), which had one of its Directors sell a sizable block of shares earlier this week. James P. Sferra unloaded 30,000 units of common stock on Monday at prices varying from $11.01 to $11.29 per share, cutting his total stake to 249,532 shares. The Director has been gradually cutting his holding over the past several months, so let’s try to find out the possible reasons why he is doing so. The provider of corporate visual image solutions has seen its shares climb by 36% over the past year, which is a good first indicator. However, the stock is down by almost 15% thus far in 2016. Just recently, the company released its financial results for the second quarter of fiscal year 2016 that ended December 31. LSI Industries generated net sales of $170.61 million for the first six months of the fiscal year, up from $163.18 million reported for the first six months of the 2015 fiscal year. The company continues to focus on growing its sales force and developing new products and technologies, so its top-line results may keep growing in the quarters ahead. Meanwhile, the company’s operating income for the first half of fiscal year 2016 increased by 134% to $11.14 million.

Considering the company’s recent stock performance and the increased worries and uncertainty about the direction of U.S equities at the moment, the Director’s decision to offload some shares is not surprising at all. Ten hedge funds from our database were invested in LSI Industries at the end of the third quarter, amassing nearly 14% of its total shares. Royce & Associates, founded by Chuck Royce, holds a stake of 2.27 million shares of LSI Industries Inc. (NASDAQ:LYTS) as of the end of September.

Follow Lsi Industries Inc (NASDAQ:LYTS)

Disclosure: None

Page 2 of 2