Braskem S.A. (NYSE:BAK) Short Interest Update

Braskem S.A. (NYSE:BAK) saw a large decline in short interest in the month of August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,540,000 shares, a decline of 13.0% from the August 15th total of 1,770,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 662,100 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.3 days.

Braskem Price Performance

BAK traded up $0.36 on Wednesday, hitting $7.27. 2,232,286 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 854,763. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $6.43 and its 200-day simple moving average is $7.52. The company has a current ratio of 1.31, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 23.25. Braskem has a one year low of $5.28 and a one year high of $10.98. The firm has a market cap of $3.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.25 and a beta of 2.02.

Braskem (NYSE:BAK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 8th. The company reported ($0.48) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.78) by $0.30. Braskem had a negative net margin of 12.98% and a negative return on equity of 276.59%. The firm had revenue of $3.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.56 billion. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Braskem will post -1.3 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Braskem

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of BAK. Point72 Asset Management L.P. boosted its holdings in shares of Braskem by 60.9% during the 2nd quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 41,200 shares of the company’s stock valued at $266,000 after purchasing an additional 15,600 shares during the last quarter. Jump Financial LLC grew its holdings in Braskem by 4.3% during the 4th quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 67,392 shares of the company’s stock valued at $594,000 after buying an additional 2,790 shares in the last quarter. Boston Partners purchased a new position in Braskem during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $627,000. American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in Braskem by 1.6% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 111,968 shares of the company’s stock worth $722,000 after acquiring an additional 1,807 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Trexquant Investment LP raised its holdings in shares of Braskem by 197.1% during the 4th quarter. Trexquant Investment LP now owns 141,852 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,251,000 after acquiring an additional 94,099 shares in the last quarter.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have commented on BAK. Citigroup upgraded shares of Braskem from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. UBS Group upgraded shares of Braskem from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $7.70 to $10.00 in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Braskem from $10.00 to $9.50 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, September 10th.

About Braskem

Braskem SA, together with its subsidiaries, produces and sells thermoplastic resins. The company operates through three segments: Brazil, United States and Europe, and Mexico. The Brazil segment produces and sells olefins, including ethylene, polymer and chemical grade propylene, butadiene, and butene-1; benzene, toluene, and xylenes products; fuels, such as automotive gasoline, liquefied petroleum gas, ethyl tertiary-butyl ether, and methyl tertiary-butyl ether; intermediates, such as cumene; aliphatics, aromatics, and hydrogenated solvents; and specialties comprising isoprene, dicyclopentadiene, piperylene, nonene, tetramer, polyisobutylene, and hydrocarbon resins.