Kronos Worldwide (NYSE:KRO) Reaches New 52-Week High After Analyst Upgrade

Shares of Kronos Worldwide, Inc. (NYSE:KRO - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday after The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on the stock from $9.00 to $11.00. The Goldman Sachs Group currently has a sell rating on the stock. Kronos Worldwide traded as high as $13.19 and last traded at $13.05, with a volume of 118105 shares. The stock had previously closed at $12.70.

Other equities research analysts have also issued reports about the company. Barclays increased their price target on Kronos Worldwide from $8.00 to $9.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday. TheStreet upgraded Kronos Worldwide from a "d+" rating to a "c-" rating in a report on Monday, March 11th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Kronos Worldwide from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Monday.

Institutional Trading of Kronos Worldwide

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new position in Kronos Worldwide in the fourth quarter valued at about $125,000. Counterpoint Mutual Funds LLC acquired a new position in Kronos Worldwide in the first quarter valued at about $134,000. Jump Financial LLC acquired a new position in Kronos Worldwide in the third quarter valued at about $173,000. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. acquired a new position in Kronos Worldwide in the first quarter valued at about $209,000. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its stake in Kronos Worldwide by 631.7% in the fourth quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 21,183 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $211,000 after buying an additional 18,288 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 15.11% of the company's stock.

Kronos Worldwide Stock Up 4.1 %

The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $11.73 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $9.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 3.68 and a quick ratio of 1.90. The stock has a market cap of $1.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -56.78 and a beta of 1.21.

Kronos Worldwide (NYSE:KRO - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, March 6th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($0.05) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.07) by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $400.10 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $404.94 million. Kronos Worldwide had a negative return on equity of 3.13% and a negative net margin of 1.50%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Kronos Worldwide, Inc. will post 0.33 EPS for the current year.

Kronos Worldwide Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 10th will be given a dividend of $0.19 per share. This represents a $0.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.75%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 10th. Kronos Worldwide's dividend payout ratio is currently -330.43%.

Kronos Worldwide Company Profile

Kronos Worldwide, Inc produces and markets titanium dioxide pigments (TiO2) in Europe, North America, the Asia Pacific, and internationally. The company produces TiO2 in two crystalline forms, rutile and anatase to impart whiteness, brightness, opacity, and durability for various products, including paints, coatings, plastics, paper, fibers, and ceramics, as well as for various specialty products, such as inks, foods, and cosmetics.