Why GoPro, Ulta, Lindsay, and More Are Commanding the Spotlight

Despite the soft broader market, Aaron’s, Inc. (NYSE:AAN) is 1% in the green today after Kyle Joseph of Jefferies initiated a ‘Buy’ rating and $30 price target on the stock. Joseph thinks Aaron’s is in a good spot to resume growth given the improvements and tailwinds in the company’s core business. Shares of the stock are up by 1.3% year-to-date and trade for 9.2-times forward earnings estimates. 25 funds that we track had a long position in Aaron’s, Inc. (NYSE:AAN) as of the 13F reporting period for the June quarter.

Winnebago Industries, Inc. (NYSE:WGO) earned $0.49 per share on sales of $263.25 million for the fourth quarter of its 2016 fiscal year, beating the Street’s estimates by $0.02 per share and $10.73 million, respectively. Overall sales rose by 4.9% year-over-year and gross margin inched up 90 basis points to 12.1%. Operating margin also rose by 70 basis points to 7.2%. CEO Michael Happe commented on the results in a press release, saying:

“Fourth-quarter revenues increased year over year, driven by continued strong growth in our towables business as well as modest improvement in motorized shipments. Importantly, income and gross margin also grew, due in part to our comprehensive strategic sourcing initiatives, a solid increase in labor efficiencies and lower warranty expense. Our towables business continues to be one of the primary performance drivers, as shipments and retail registrations both outperform the market, thanks to several new products and increased dealer outlets.”

The number of funds in our system which had holdings in Winnebago Industries, Inc. (NYSE:WGO) rose by two during the second quarter to 13 at the end of June.

The 13th isn’t proving to be an unlucky day for Lindsay Corporation (NYSE:LNN) shareholders, after the company reported better-than-expected fiscal 2016 fourth quarter results that have sent its shares up by nearly 11%. For the period, the company’s sales rose by 8% year-over-year to $132.9 million, while its gross margin expanded to 30.1% from 27.1%. Net earnings for the quarter came in at $0.73 per diluted share, compared to a net loss of $0.28 per diluted share in the comparable period of its 2015 fiscal year. Although Lindsay Corporation doesn’t expect the irrigation market to improve much in its fiscal 2017, they are optimistic about its growth over the long-term given the global population growth, expanding food production, and need for efficient water use. Eight funds in our database were long Lindsay Corporation (NYSE:LNN) at the end of June, up by two funds quarter-over-quarter.

Disclosure: None