Tronox (NYSE:TROX) Sets New 12-Month High - Time to Buy?

Key Points

• Tronox hit a new 52-week high of $10.59 (last at $10.15) despite an average analyst rating of Hold and an average price target of $6.65.
• The company reported a quarterly loss of ($0.60) EPS, with a negative net margin (-16.22%), negative return on equity and a negative P/E, signaling weak fundamentals even as revenue came in roughly in line with estimates.
• Insiders have been selling shares (172,711 sold in the last 90 days) and the firm has elevated leverage (debt-to-equity 2.16), though it pays a small dividend (annualized $0.20, ~2.0% yield).

Tronox Holdings PLC (NYSE:TROX - Get Free Report)'s share price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $10.59 and last traded at $10.1520, with a volume of 2027010 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $10.12.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $8.00 price objective on shares of Tronox in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of Tronox in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (d)" rating on shares of Tronox in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Mizuho upped their price objective on Tronox from $4.50 to $5.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a research report on Monday, March 23rd. Finally, UBS Group upped their price objective on Tronox from $7.50 to $9.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $6.65.

Tronox Stock Performance

The business has a 50-day moving average of $8.23 and a two-hundred day moving average of $5.94. The company has a market cap of $1.61 billion, a P/E ratio of -3.42 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.16, a current ratio of 2.46 and a quick ratio of 0.67.

Tronox (NYSE:TROX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 18th. The company reported ($0.60) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.43) by ($0.17). Tronox had a negative net margin of 16.22% and a negative return on equity of 14.75%. The company had revenue of $730.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $730.22 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.03 EPS. Tronox's revenue for the quarter was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Tronox Holdings PLC will post -1.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Tronox Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, February 23rd were given a dividend of $0.05 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 23rd. This represents a $0.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. Tronox's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -6.73%.

Insider Activity at Tronox

In related news, SVP Jeffrey A. Engle sold 14,575 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $6.60, for a total transaction of $96,195.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 175,251 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,156,656.60. This trade represents a 7.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Jean Francois Turgeon sold 18,563 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $6.60, for a total value of $122,515.80. Following the sale, the director directly owned 754,009 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,976,459.40. The trade was a 2.40% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 172,711 shares of company stock valued at $1,145,137 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 2.00% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Tronox

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in TROX. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Tronox by 292.2% in the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 8,715 shares of the company's stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 6,493 shares in the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd acquired a new stake in Tronox in the third quarter worth about $37,000. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new stake in Tronox in the second quarter worth about $38,000. Westview Management dba Westview Investment Advisors acquired a new stake in Tronox in the fourth quarter worth about $42,000. Finally, Aigen Investment Management LP acquired a new stake in Tronox in the fourth quarter worth about $43,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 73.36% of the company's stock.

Tronox Company Profile

Tronox Holdings plc is a vertically integrated global producer of titanium dioxide (TiO₂) pigment and specialty materials. The company's operations encompass the full supply chain for TiO₂, from mining and processing titanium-bearing ores—such as ilmenite and rutile—to the production of high-purity pigment for use in paints, coatings, plastics, paper and other industrial applications. In addition to TiO₂, Tronox's product portfolio includes zircon, rare earth byproducts and other specialty minerals that serve a range of industrial markets.

Tronox operates a network of mines, processing facilities and pigment plants located across North America, Europe, the Middle East, Australia and South Africa.

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