Axalta Coating Systems (NYSE:AXTA) Reaches New 12-Month Low on Analyst Downgrade

Axalta Coating Systems Ltd. (NYSE:AXTA) hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Friday after Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on the stock from $45.00 to $42.00. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an equal weight rating on the stock. Axalta Coating Systems traded as low as $28.95 and last traded at $30.11, with a volume of 463860 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $31.55.

A number of other research firms have also commented on AXTA. StockNews.com lowered shares of Axalta Coating Systems from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their target price on Axalta Coating Systems from $44.00 to $42.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, December 19th. KeyCorp reaffirmed a “sector weight” rating on shares of Axalta Coating Systems in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Wolfe Research upgraded Axalta Coating Systems from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $41.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on Axalta Coating Systems from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $43.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Troy D. Weaver sold 10,457 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.57, for a total value of $392,869.49. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 74,905 shares in the company, valued at $2,814,180.85. This represents a 12.25 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Axalta Coating Systems

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Axalta Coating Systems by 116.3% during the fourth quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC now owns 824 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 443 shares during the period. Jones Financial Companies Lllp boosted its holdings in Axalta Coating Systems by 60.7% during the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 1,318 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 498 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. grew its position in shares of Axalta Coating Systems by 35.4% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 2,093 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $72,000 after buying an additional 547 shares during the period. Plato Investment Management Ltd increased its stake in shares of Axalta Coating Systems by 156.4% in the 4th quarter. Plato Investment Management Ltd now owns 2,238 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $77,000 after acquiring an additional 1,365 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Axalta Coating Systems by 31.4% in the 4th quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,581 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $88,000 after acquiring an additional 617 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 98.28% of the company’s stock.

Axalta Coating Systems Stock Down 5.8 %

The firm has a market cap of $6.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 1.33. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $35.41 and its two-hundred day moving average is $36.46. The company has a current ratio of 2.01, a quick ratio of 1.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74.

Axalta Coating Systems (NYSE:AXTA) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.60 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.51 by $0.09. Axalta Coating Systems had a net margin of 7.41% and a return on equity of 26.29%. The company had revenue of $1.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.31 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.43 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Axalta Coating Systems Ltd. will post 2.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Axalta Coating Systems

Axalta Coating Systems Ltd., through its subsidiaries, manufactures, markets, and distributes high-performance coatings systems in North America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Asia Pacific, and Latin America. The company operates through two segments, Performance Coatings and Mobility Coatings.