Minerals Technologies (NYSE:MTX) Downgraded to Buy Rating by Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Minerals Technologies has been downgraded from a "strong-buy" to a "buy" rating by Wall Street Zen, signaling a change in analyst sentiment regarding the stock's future performance.
• Truist Financial raised its target price for Minerals Technologies from $80.00 to $84.00, indicating continued confidence in the company's growth potential.
• Despite a recent earnings report showing a decrease in revenue compared to last year, the company exceeded analysts' EPS expectations, reporting $1.55 per share against a consensus of $1.43.

Wall Street Zen cut shares of Minerals Technologies (NYSE:MTX - Free Report) from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a research note released on Saturday.

Separately, Truist Financial boosted their price objective on Minerals Technologies from $80.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, July 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $84.00.

Minerals Technologies Price Performance

NYSE MTX traded down $0.42 on Friday, hitting $63.15. 107,295 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 207,981. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $60.97 and a two-hundred day moving average of $59.56. The company has a market cap of $1.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 1,052.68 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a current ratio of 1.95, a quick ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57. Minerals Technologies has a 1-year low of $49.54 and a 1-year high of $86.49.

Minerals Technologies (NYSE:MTX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The basic materials company reported $1.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.43 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $528.90 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $529.13 million. Minerals Technologies had a net margin of 0.10% and a return on equity of 10.64%. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.65 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Minerals Technologies will post 6.62 EPS for the current year.

Minerals Technologies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 5th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 15th were issued a dividend of $0.11 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 15th. This represents a $0.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. Minerals Technologies's payout ratio is currently 733.33%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. First Horizon Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Minerals Technologies by 161.1% during the 2nd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 590 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 364 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in Minerals Technologies by 626.8% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 596 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 514 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in Minerals Technologies by 44.6% during the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,011 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $56,000 after purchasing an additional 312 shares in the last quarter. Strs Ohio bought a new stake in Minerals Technologies during the 1st quarter worth approximately $70,000. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Minerals Technologies by 136.2% during the 2nd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,278 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $71,000 after purchasing an additional 737 shares in the last quarter. 97.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Minerals Technologies Company Profile

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.