Akzo Nobel NV (OTCMKTS:AKZOY) Short Interest Update

Key Points

• Short interest plunged 62.2% to 10,709 shares as of March 31 (from 28,311 on March 15), leaving the short-interest ratio effectively at 0.0 days based on average daily volume.
• Akzo Nobel missed on EPS in the latest quarter ($0.22 vs. $0.29 expected) but topped revenue estimates ($2.80B vs. $2.51B); the stock trades around $20.24 with a market cap of $10.4B and a P/E of 14.35.
• Analyst sentiment has shifted toward caution with several downgrades from buy/strong-buy to hold, leaving an average rating of "Hold" (one Strong Buy, six Holds).

Akzo Nobel NV (OTCMKTS:AKZOY - Get Free Report) saw a significant drop in short interest in the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totaling 10,709 shares, a drop of 62.2% from the March 15th total of 28,311 shares. Approximately 0.0% of the company's stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 609,008 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 0.0 days.

Akzo Nobel Stock Up 1.2%

Shares of OTCMKTS:AKZOY opened at $20.24 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $21.19 and a 200 day simple moving average of $22.15. The firm has a market cap of $10.40 billion, a PE ratio of 14.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 1.12. Akzo Nobel has a 12-month low of $18.04 and a 12-month high of $24.52.

Akzo Nobel (OTCMKTS:AKZOY - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The basic materials company reported $0.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.29 by ($0.07). The company had revenue of $2.80 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.51 billion. Akzo Nobel had a return on equity of 13.73% and a net margin of 6.49%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Akzo Nobel will post 1.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on AKZOY. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered shares of Akzo Nobel from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 24th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Akzo Nobel from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, April 6th. UBS Group upgraded shares of Akzo Nobel to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, January 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered shares of Akzo Nobel from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 1st. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Akzo Nobel from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, March 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Akzo Nobel currently has an average rating of "Hold".

About Akzo Nobel

Akzo Nobel N.V. is a Dutch multinational company specializing in paints, coatings and specialty chemicals. Established through the 1994 merger of Akzo and Nobel Industries, the company traces its roots back to chemical and saltpeter production in the Netherlands. Today, Akzo Nobel is recognized as one of the world's leading coatings manufacturers, serving both decorative and industrial markets.

The company's business is organized into three principal segments: Decorative Paints, Performance Coatings and Specialty Chemicals.

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