Capital Fund Management S.A. Buys New Shares in Axalta Coating Systems Ltd. $AXTA

Key Points

• Capital Fund Management S.A. has acquired a new stake in Axalta Coating Systems Ltd., purchasing 81,156 shares valued at approximately $2.69 million.
• Many institutional investors, including JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc., have recently increased their holdings in Axalta, with *98.28%* of the stock currently owned by institutional investors.
• Analysts have downgraded Axalta Coating Systems' stock ratings, with the current consensus rating being a "Moderate Buy" and a price target of approximately $37.71.

Capital Fund Management S.A. acquired a new position in Axalta Coating Systems Ltd. (NYSE:AXTA - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund acquired 81,156 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock, valued at approximately $2,692,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in AXTA. Financial Management Professionals Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Axalta Coating Systems by 11,757.1% during the first quarter. Financial Management Professionals Inc. now owns 830 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 823 shares during the period. Golden State Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Axalta Coating Systems by 105.9% during the first quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 949 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 488 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Axalta Coating Systems by 951.6% during the first quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 1,325 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $44,000 after acquiring an additional 1,199 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a. raised its holdings in shares of Axalta Coating Systems by 31.1% during the first quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 2,744 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $91,000 after acquiring an additional 651 shares during the period. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp raised its holdings in shares of Axalta Coating Systems by 12.1% during the first quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 3,704 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $123,000 after acquiring an additional 401 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.28% of the company's stock.

Axalta Coating Systems Stock Up 0.5%

AXTA stock traded up $0.16 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $31.12. The company's stock had a trading volume of 613,377 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,411,487. The company has a quick ratio of 1.53, a current ratio of 2.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.47. The company has a market capitalization of $6.74 billion, a PE ratio of 15.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 1.27. Axalta Coating Systems Ltd. has a 12 month low of $27.58 and a 12 month high of $41.65. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $29.96 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $31.77.

Axalta Coating Systems (NYSE:AXTA - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.64 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.61 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $1.32 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.33 billion. Axalta Coating Systems had a net margin of 8.58% and a return on equity of 25.32%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 3.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.57 earnings per share. Axalta Coating Systems has set its FY 2025 guidance at 2.450-2.550 EPS. Q3 2025 guidance at 0.630-0.670 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Axalta Coating Systems Ltd. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Barclays cut their price target on shares of Axalta Coating Systems from $45.00 to $42.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 15th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Axalta Coating Systems from $40.00 to $36.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Citigroup reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $34.00 price objective (down previously from $35.00) on shares of Axalta Coating Systems in a research note on Friday, June 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price objective on shares of Axalta Coating Systems from $46.00 to $40.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Axalta Coating Systems from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $37.71.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Amy Tufano sold 3,194 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.06, for a total transaction of $99,205.64. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 12,087 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $375,422.22. This represents a 20.90% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

About Axalta Coating Systems

Axalta Coating Systems Ltd., through its subsidiaries, manufactures, markets, and distributes high-performance coatings systems in North America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Asia Pacific, and Latin America. The company operates through two segments, Performance Coatings and Mobility Coatings.