Tronox (NYSE:TROX) Shares Down 4.9% - Time to Sell?

Key Points

• Tronox Holdings' stock price dropped 4.9% to $3.24, following a trading volume increase of 12% compared to its average.
• Multiple analysts have downgraded Tronox's ratings and price targets, with Goldman Sachs lowering its target from $11.50 to $7.50 and BMO cutting it from $7.00 to $3.00.
• The company's recent quarterly earnings report showed a miss on EPS estimates and a year-over-year revenue decline of 10.9%, indicating significant financial challenges.

Shares of Tronox Holdings PLC (NYSE:TROX - Get Free Report) dropped 4.9% on Monday . The stock traded as low as $3.22 and last traded at $3.24. Approximately 3,127,366 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 12% from the average daily volume of 2,789,361 shares. The stock had previously closed at $3.40.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Truist Financial set a $5.00 price objective on Tronox in a report on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Tronox from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their price target for the company from $5.00 to $7.00 in a research note on Friday, May 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price objective on shares of Tronox from $7.00 to $4.50 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Tronox from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lowered shares of Tronox from a "market perform" rating to an "underperform" rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $7.00 to $3.00 in a research note on Monday, June 30th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Tronox presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $5.01.

Tronox Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $506.28 million, a P/E ratio of -2.02 and a beta of 1.35. The company has a quick ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 2.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $5.30 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $6.37.

Tronox (NYSE:TROX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported ($0.28) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.04) by ($0.24). Tronox had a negative return on equity of 4.83% and a negative net margin of 8.48%. The firm had revenue of $731.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $802.03 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.07 earnings per share. The business's revenue was down 10.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Tronox Holdings PLC will post 0.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Tronox Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 3rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 12th will be given a $0.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 11th. This represents a dividend yield of 629.0%. Tronox's dividend payout ratio is presently -31.65%.

Insider Transactions at Tronox

In other news, SVP Jeffrey A. Engle purchased 12,600 shares of Tronox stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 1st. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $3.07 per share, for a total transaction of $38,682.00. Following the purchase, the senior vice president directly owned 146,926 shares of the company's stock, valued at $451,062.82. This trade represents a 9.38% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO John D. Romano acquired 100,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 1st. The shares were purchased at an average price of $3.09 per share, for a total transaction of $309,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,333,485 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,120,468.65. This trade represents a 8.11% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have bought 133,600 shares of company stock worth $415,522. Company insiders own 1.70% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Tronox

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC bought a new position in shares of Tronox during the first quarter worth approximately $102,000. Deutsche Bank AG increased its stake in Tronox by 52.8% during the 4th quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 101,764 shares of the company's stock worth $1,025,000 after acquiring an additional 35,146 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its holdings in Tronox by 36.3% in the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 32,936 shares of the company's stock valued at $232,000 after acquiring an additional 8,777 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Tronox during the 4th quarter valued at $701,000. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company MN lifted its position in shares of Tronox by 16.0% during the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 78,805 shares of the company's stock valued at $794,000 after acquiring an additional 10,874 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 73.36% of the company's stock.

About Tronox

Tronox Holdings plc operates as a vertically integrated manufacturer of TiO2 pigment in North America, South and Central America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia Pacific. The company operates titanium-bearing mineral sand mines; and engages in beneficiation and smelting operations. It offers TiO2 pigment; ultrafine specialty TiO2; zircon; feedstock; pig iron; monazite; titanium tetrachloride; and other products.