Axalta Coating Systems Ltd. (NYSE:AXTA) Shares Sold by Natixis Advisors LLC

Key Points

• Natixis Advisors LLC reduced its stake in Axalta Coating Systems Ltd. by 11.9%, selling 36,390 shares and holding 268,601 shares valued at approximately $8.91 million.
• Several other institutional investors also adjusted their positions in Axalta, with notable increases from Federated Hermes Inc. (12.3%) and Baldwin Investment Management LLC (76.8%).
• Analysts have lowered price targets for Axalta, with an average target of $37.71 and a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" as a mix of buy and hold ratings were assigned.

Natixis Advisors LLC trimmed its position in Axalta Coating Systems Ltd. (NYSE:AXTA - Free Report) by 11.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 268,601 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after selling 36,390 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors LLC owned approximately 0.12% of Axalta Coating Systems worth $8,909,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Financial Management Professionals Inc. grew its holdings in Axalta Coating Systems by 11,757.1% during the 1st quarter. Financial Management Professionals Inc. now owns 830 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 823 shares during the period. Golden State Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Axalta Coating Systems by 105.9% in the first quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 949 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 488 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a. grew its position in shares of Axalta Coating Systems by 31.1% during the 1st 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. Headlands Technologies LLC lifted its stake in Axalta Coating Systems by 54.7% in the 4th quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 3,270 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $112,000 after purchasing an additional 1,156 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp raised its position in Axalta Coating Systems by 12.1% in the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 3,704 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $123,000 after purchasing an additional 401 shares during the period. 98.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Axalta Coating Systems Price Performance

Shares of AXTA traded up $0.02 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $28.49. The company had a trading volume of 728,742 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,382,299. The company has a market capitalization of $6.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.96, a PEG ratio of 1.36 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 firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $29.89 and a 200-day simple moving average of $32.49. The company has a current ratio of 2.12, a quick ratio of 1.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.47.

Axalta Coating Systems (NYSE:AXTA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.61 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $1.32 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.33 billion. Axalta Coating Systems had a net margin of 8.58% and a return on equity of 25.32%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 3.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.57 EPS. Research analysts expect that Axalta Coating Systems Ltd. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have issued reports on AXTA. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut shares of Axalta Coating Systems from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $32.00 price target for the company. in a report on Friday, July 18th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Axalta Coating Systems from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Citigroup reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $34.00 price target (down from $35.00) on shares of Axalta Coating Systems in a research note on Friday, June 13th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of Axalta Coating Systems from $40.00 to $36.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on shares of Axalta Coating Systems from $46.00 to $40.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Axalta Coating Systems presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $37.71.

Axalta Coating Systems Profile

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.