Basf Se (OTCMKTS:BASFY) Stock Short Interest Rises 441.0%

Key Points

• BASF’s short interest surged 441% to 96,531 shares as of October 15, up from 17,842 shares at the end of September. Despite the increase, short interest represented approximately 0.0% of shares outstanding, with a days-to-cover ratio of 0.4.
• BASF shares opened at $14.62, compared with a 12-month range of $11.93 to $16.25. The company has a $52.18 billion market capitalization and trades at a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.33.
• BASF exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $0.37 in EPS versus the $0.24 consensus estimate and revenue of $19.99 billion versus $18.85 billion expected. Analyst sentiment remains mixed, with a consensus rating of “Hold” after Deutsche Bank downgraded the stock to Hold.

Basf Se (OTCMKTS:BASFY - Get Free Report) saw a large growth in short interest in October. As of October 15th, there was short interest totaling 96,531 shares, a growth of 441.0% from the September 30th total of 17,842 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 273,113 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 0.4 days. Approximately 0.0% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Basf Price Performance

Shares of OTCMKTS:BASFY opened at $14.62 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 1.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. The stock has a market capitalization of $52.18 billion, a PE ratio of 21.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 0.76. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $14.86 and its 200-day moving average price is $14.50. Basf has a twelve month low of $11.93 and a twelve month high of $16.25.

Basf (OTCMKTS:BASFY - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The basic materials company reported $0.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.24 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $19.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.85 billion. Basf had a net margin of 9.40% and a return on equity of 5.66%. Equities research analysts expect that Basf will post 0.82 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

BASFY has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Citigroup restated a "buy" rating on shares of Basf in a research note on Thursday, September 3rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut Basf from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold".

About Basf

BASF SE is a Germany-based chemical company headquartered in Ludwigshafen, Germany. Founded in 1865, the company develops, manufactures and markets a broad range of chemicals, materials and solutions for industrial, agricultural and consumer applications. Its products are used in areas including transportation, construction, electronics, packaging, food and personal care.

BASF's business includes chemicals and intermediates, performance materials, coatings, catalysts, battery materials, agricultural products, nutrition and care ingredients, and industrial solutions.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.