Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Takes $3.08 Million Position in Minerals Technologies Inc. (NYSE:MTX)

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in Minerals Technologies Inc. (NYSE:MTX - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 40,388 shares of the basic materials company's stock, valued at approximately $3,078,000. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.13% of Minerals Technologies as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of MTX. FMR LLC increased its position in Minerals Technologies by 42.7% in the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,761,925 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $134,276,000 after buying an additional 527,206 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Minerals Technologies in the fourth quarter worth about $16,360,000. American Century Companies Inc. increased its position in Minerals Technologies by 31.1% in the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 861,173 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $65,630,000 after buying an additional 204,371 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Minerals Technologies in the fourth quarter worth about $10,797,000. Finally, Foundry Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Minerals Technologies in the fourth quarter worth about $7,735,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.29% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Minerals Technologies

In other news, CFO Erik Aldag purchased 1,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 30th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $50.37 per share, with a total value of $50,370.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief financial officer now owns 4,245 shares in the company, valued at approximately $213,820.65. This represents a 30.82% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 3.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently issued reports on MTX. StockNews.com cut Minerals Technologies from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Truist Financial cut their target price on Minerals Technologies from $92.00 to $80.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 28th.

Minerals Technologies Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MTX traded up $0.53 during trading on Friday, hitting $59.43. 287,509 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 185,593. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 2.84 and a quick ratio of 1.98. Minerals Technologies Inc. has a 52-week low of $49.54 and a 52-week high of $90.30. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $58.89 and its 200 day simple moving average is $70.19. The company has a market cap of $1.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.47 and a beta of 1.22.

Minerals Technologies (NYSE:MTX - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The basic materials company reported $1.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.16 by ($0.02). Minerals Technologies had a return on equity of 11.49% and a net margin of 7.89%. The business had revenue of $491.80 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $502.03 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.49 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that Minerals Technologies Inc. will post 6.62 EPS for the current year.

Minerals Technologies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Investors of record on Friday, May 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.11 per share. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.74%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 30th. Minerals Technologies's payout ratio is presently -57.14%.

Minerals Technologies Company Profile

Minerals Technologies Inc develops, produces, and markets various mineral, mineral-based, and related systems and services. The company operates through two segments, Consumer & Specialties, and Engineered Solutions segments. The Consumer & Specialties segment offers household and personal care products, such as pet litter, personal care, fabric care, edible oil and other fluid purification, animal health, and agricultural products; and specialty additives products, including precipitated calcium carbonate and ground calcium carbonate products that are used in the paper, paperboard, and fiber based packaging industries, as well as automotive, construction, and table and food applications.