NL Industries, Inc. (NYSE:NL) Short Interest Up 26.7% in March

Key Points

• Short interest jumped 26.7% in March to 170,628 shares (about 0.4% of shares sold short), leaving a short-interest ratio of 3.8 days based on average volume.
• NL missed on its quarter with EPS of ($0.63) versus a $0.18 consensus, reported negative net margin and ROE, and carries a consensus Sell rating.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend to $0.10 (annualized yield ~6.9%), up from $0.09 despite ongoing losses reflected in a negative payout ratio.

NL Industries, Inc. (NYSE:NL - Get Free Report) was the target of a large increase in short interest during the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totaling 170,628 shares, an increase of 26.7% from the March 15th total of 134,662 shares. Currently, 0.4% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 44,468 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.8 days.

NL Industries Stock Performance

NL traded down $0.04 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $5.78. The stock had a trading volume of 3,482 shares, compared to its average volume of 56,757. The stock has a market capitalization of $282.43 million, a P/E ratio of -7.51 and a beta of 0.17. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $5.98 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $5.87. NL Industries has a 52 week low of $5.04 and a 52 week high of $9.27.

NL Industries (NYSE:NL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, March 9th. The basic materials company reported ($0.63) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.18 by ($0.81). The firm had revenue of $37.70 million during the quarter. NL Industries had a negative net margin of 23.88% and a negative return on equity of 9.43%.

NL Industries Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 26th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 10th were given a $0.10 dividend. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.9%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 10th. This is a positive change from NL Industries's previous quarterly dividend of $0.09. NL Industries's dividend payout ratio is -51.95%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Aristides Capital LLC lifted its stake in shares of NL Industries by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Aristides Capital LLC now owns 417,014 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $2,281,000 after purchasing an additional 2,075 shares during the period. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of NL Industries by 8.3% in the 4th quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC now owns 299,093 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $1,636,000 after purchasing an additional 23,029 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its stake in shares of NL Industries by 11.0% in the 4th quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 232,131 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $1,270,000 after purchasing an additional 23,029 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of NL Industries by 3.6% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 209,872 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $1,148,000 after purchasing an additional 7,222 shares during the period. Finally, Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC lifted its stake in shares of NL Industries by 70.0% in the 3rd quarter. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC now owns 93,864 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $577,000 after purchasing an additional 38,640 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 10.67% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on NL shares. Wall Street Zen upgraded NL Industries to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, February 7th. Weiss Ratings lowered NL Industries from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Sell rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Sell".

About NL Industries

NL Industries, Inc is a U.S.-based industrial minerals company whose primary focus is the mining, upgrading and marketing of titanium feedstocks. The company's products include synthetic rutile and chloride slag, which serve as key raw materials for producers of titanium dioxide pigment. These pigments are widely used as whitening and opacifying agents in coatings, plastics, paper and specialty applications.

NL Industries serves a global customer base, supplying feedstocks under long-term agreements and through spot transactions.

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