Lazard Asset Management LLC Increases Holdings in Minerals Technologies Inc. (NYSE:MTX)

Lazard Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Minerals Technologies Inc. (NYSE:MTX - Free Report) by 42.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 24,048 shares of the basic materials company's stock after purchasing an additional 7,180 shares during the period. Lazard Asset Management LLC owned 0.08% of Minerals Technologies worth $1,832,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Blair William & Co. IL lifted its holdings in Minerals Technologies by 3.2% during the 4th quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 5,657 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $431,000 after purchasing an additional 177 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in Minerals Technologies by 21.4% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,009 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $78,000 after purchasing an additional 178 shares in the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. lifted its holdings in Minerals Technologies by 4.6% during the 4th quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 5,312 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $405,000 after purchasing an additional 235 shares in the last quarter. Savant Capital LLC lifted its holdings in Minerals Technologies by 7.4% during the 4th quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 3,783 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $288,000 after purchasing an additional 260 shares in the last quarter. Finally, QRG Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Minerals Technologies by 4.5% during the 4th quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 6,481 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $494,000 after purchasing an additional 280 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.29% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently issued reports on MTX shares. Wall Street Zen cut Minerals Technologies from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Truist Financial lowered their price target on Minerals Technologies from $92.00 to $80.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 28th.

Minerals Technologies Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MTX traded down $0.49 on Friday, hitting $58.28. The company's stock had a trading volume of 263,928 shares, compared to its average volume of 187,449. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $58.02 and a 200 day simple moving average of $69.59. Minerals Technologies Inc. has a 1 year low of $49.54 and a 1 year high of $90.30. The company has a market capitalization of $1.85 billion, a PE ratio of 11.25 and a beta of 1.22. 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 (NYSE:MTX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The basic materials company reported $1.14 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.16 by ($0.02). Minerals Technologies had a net margin of 7.89% and a return on equity of 11.49%. The business had revenue of $491.80 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $502.03 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.49 EPS. The business's revenue was down 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Minerals Technologies Inc. will post 6.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Minerals Technologies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 30th will be issued a $0.11 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 30th. This represents a $0.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.75%. Minerals Technologies's payout ratio is currently -57.14%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Minerals Technologies

In other news, Director Kristina M. Johnson acquired 1,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 2nd. The shares were bought at an average cost of $53.79 per share, with a total value of $53,790.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 1,400 shares in the company, valued at approximately $75,306. This represents a 250.00% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 3.30% of the company's stock.

About Minerals Technologies

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.