Wall Street Zen Downgrades FutureFuel (NYSE:FF) to Sell

FutureFuel (NYSE:FF - Get Free Report) was downgraded by equities research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report issued on Thursday.

FutureFuel Trading Down 0.9%

Shares of FF traded down $0.04 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $3.90. The company's stock had a trading volume of 307,876 shares, compared to its average volume of 330,602. The company's 50-day moving average is $4.06 and its 200-day moving average is $4.70. FutureFuel has a 52-week low of $3.77 and a 52-week high of $6.40. The firm has a market capitalization of $170.61 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 4.75 and a beta of 0.69.

FutureFuel (NYSE:FF - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, May 12th. The energy company reported ($0.40) EPS for the quarter. FutureFuel had a net margin of 13.18% and a return on equity of 15.32%. The firm had revenue of $17.54 million for the quarter.

Insider Buying and Selling at FutureFuel

In other FutureFuel news, Director Richard P. Rowe purchased 15,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $3.95 per share, with a total value of $59,250.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 20,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $79,000. This represents a 300.00% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 41.10% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On FutureFuel

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its holdings in shares of FutureFuel by 28.8% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 12,990 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $69,000 after purchasing an additional 2,904 shares in the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of FutureFuel by 15.9% during the 1st quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 22,391 shares of the energy company's stock worth $87,000 after purchasing an additional 3,076 shares during the last quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN lifted its position in shares of FutureFuel by 25.9% during the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 16,225 shares of the energy company's stock worth $86,000 after purchasing an additional 3,337 shares during the last quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC lifted its position in shares of FutureFuel by 7.3% during the 1st quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 60,651 shares of the energy company's stock worth $237,000 after purchasing an additional 4,119 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC lifted its position in shares of FutureFuel by 14.7% during the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 39,288 shares of the energy company's stock worth $208,000 after purchasing an additional 5,047 shares during the last quarter. 44.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About FutureFuel

FutureFuel Corp., together with its subsidiaries, manufactures and sells diversified chemical, bio-based fuel, and bio-based specialty chemical products in the United States. The company operates through two segments, Chemicals and Biofuels. The Chemicals segment provides various custom chemicals that are used in the coatings, chemical intermediates, industrial and consumer cleaning, oil and gas, and specialty polymers industries; and performance chemicals, such as polymer modifiers, glycerin products, and various specialty chemicals and solvents.