Sasol Ltd. $SSL Stock: Hennessy Advisors Inc. Reduces Holdings

Key Points

• Hennessy Advisors reduced its Sasol stake by 8.9% in the third quarter, selling 59,600 shares and retaining 609,400 shares valued at approximately $8.4 million. Institutional investors collectively own about 1.21% of Sasol.
• Analyst sentiment improved, with Bank of America upgrading Sasol to “buy” and Wall Street Zen issuing a “strong-buy” rating. However, the broader analyst consensus remains “Hold,” with two Buy, four Hold and one Sell rating.
• Sasol shares opened at $17.30, near their 52-week high of $18.19, while insiders sold 60,412 shares worth roughly $801,000 over the past 90 days. The company most recently reported quarterly earnings of $0.56 per share on $4.61 billion in revenue.

Hennessy Advisors Inc. cut its stake in shares of Sasol Ltd. (NYSE:SSL - Free Report) by 8.9% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 609,400 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after selling 59,600 shares during the quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. owned approximately 0.09% of Sasol worth $8,422,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Ramsey Quantitative Systems bought a new stake in Sasol in the second quarter valued at $68,000. Mather Group LLC. acquired a new position in shares of Sasol during the third quarter valued at about $83,000. Pinnacle Wealth Planning Services Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Sasol by 16.3% during the third quarter. Pinnacle Wealth Planning Services Inc. now owns 7,385 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $102,000 after purchasing an additional 1,033 shares during the period. Foster Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Sasol during the 3rd quarter worth about $142,000. Finally, Kathmere Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Sasol during the 1st quarter worth about $152,000. 1.21% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently commented on SSL. Zacks Research upgraded Sasol from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, August 31st. Wall Street Zen raised Sasol from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, September 5th. Weiss Ratings raised Sasol from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 8th. Finally, Bank of America upgraded Sasol from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 9th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold".

Insider Buying and Selling at Sasol

In related news, CFO Walt Bruns sold 1,798 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $14.14, for a total value of $25,423.72. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 54,819 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $775,140.66. This trade represents a 3.18% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Vuyo Dominic Kahla sold 21,640 shares of Sasol stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $14.14, for a total value of $305,989.60. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 114,792 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,623,158.88. This trade represents a 15.86% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 60,412 shares of company stock worth $800,983. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Sasol Stock Performance

SSL opened at $17.30 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a current ratio of 1.79. The company's fifty day moving average price is $14.44 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $11.83. Sasol Ltd. has a 1-year low of $5.97 and a 1-year high of $18.19.

Sasol (NYSE:SSL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 14th. The oil and gas company reported $0.56 earnings per share for the quarter. The business had revenue of $4.61 billion during the quarter. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Sasol Ltd. will post 2.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Sasol Company Profile

Sasol Limited is an integrated chemicals and energy company headquartered in Johannesburg, South Africa. The company develops and commercializes technologies that convert coal and natural gas into fuels, chemical feedstocks and other products, including through Fischer–Tropsch processes. Its portfolio includes fuel components, solvents, alcohols, surfactants, waxes, polymers and other specialty and performance chemicals used in industrial and consumer applications.

Sasol's operations have historically been centered in South Africa, where the company operates major energy and chemicals facilities, with additional manufacturing, research and marketing activities in international markets.

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