Electron Capital Partners LLC Purchases Shares of 1,099,943 NPK International Inc. $NPKI

Key Points

• Electron Capital Partners acquired 1,099,943 NPK International shares worth approximately $15.9 million, giving it a 1.3% stake. Institutional investors collectively own 80.81% of the company.
• Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus, with three Buy ratings and one Hold rating and an average price target of $14.17. NPK International also slightly beat quarterly earnings estimates, reporting $0.12 per share versus $0.11 expected.
• NPKI shares opened at $14.14 after declining 1.5%, compared with a 52-week range of $8.63 to $16.50. Insiders sold 188,159 shares worth $2.72 million over the past 90 days, including substantial sales by the CEO and a vice president under 10b5-1 plans.

Electron Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in NPK International Inc. (NYSE:NPKI - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 1,099,943 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $15,938,000. Electron Capital Partners LLC owned about 1.30% of NPK International at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of NPKI. CWM LLC lifted its position in NPK International by 28.1% during the 4th quarter. CWM LLC now owns 4,917 shares of the company's stock worth $59,000 after acquiring an additional 1,079 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its stake in NPK International by 6.5% during the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 22,354 shares of the company's stock valued at $324,000 after purchasing an additional 1,357 shares during the period. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV grew its holdings in NPK International by 6.5% in the 4th quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 24,363 shares of the company's stock valued at $290,000 after buying an additional 1,478 shares during the last quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in NPK International by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 45,353 shares of the company's stock valued at $541,000 after buying an additional 1,489 shares during the last quarter. Finally, ProShare Advisors LLC increased its position in NPK International by 11.5% in the 4th quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 14,970 shares of the company's stock worth $178,000 after buying an additional 1,542 shares during the period. 80.81% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on NPKI. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of NPK International from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. B. Riley Financial reissued a "buy" rating on shares of NPK International in a report on Monday, May 4th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, NPK International presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $14.17.

NPK International Trading Down 1.5%

Shares of NPKI stock opened at $14.14 on Tuesday. NPK International Inc. has a 52-week low of $8.63 and a 52-week high of $16.50. The stock has a market cap of $1.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.73 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a quick ratio of 1.40 and a current ratio of 1.58. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $14.83 and a 200-day moving average of $14.51.

NPK International (NYSE:NPKI - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported $0.12 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.11 by $0.01. NPK International had a net margin of 13.71% and a return on equity of 10.56%. The business had revenue of $75.07 million for the quarter. On average, equities research analysts forecast that NPK International Inc. will post 0.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Lori Briggs sold 10,446 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $14.58, for a total value of $152,302.68. Following the sale, the vice president owned 255,490 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,725,044.20. The trade was a 3.93% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CEO Matthew Lanigan sold 167,375 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $14.43, for a total value of $2,415,221.25. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 254,699 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,675,306.57. This trade represents a 39.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 188,159 shares of company stock worth $2,721,117 in the last 90 days. 4.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

NPK International Profile

NPK International, Inc NYSE: NPKI is a specialty chemical distributor supplying a broad range of industrial and performance materials across diverse end-markets. Its product portfolio includes acetic acid and derivatives, alcohols, ketones, esters, glycol ethers, glycols, specialty solvents, select inorganic chemicals and crop-protection intermediates. These materials serve industries such as coatings, adhesives and sealants, oil and gas, personal care, pharmaceuticals, agrochemicals and water treatment.

The company places a strong emphasis on supply-chain security and technical service, maintaining warehousing, logistics support and laboratory capabilities at its regional distribution centers.

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