American Vanguard Co. (NYSE:AVD) Short Interest Up 10.3% in December

American Vanguard Co. (NYSE:AVD) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest in December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 935,600 shares, a growth of 10.3% from the December 15th total of 848,300 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 321,300 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.9 days. Approximately 3.5% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

American Vanguard Price Performance

Shares of American Vanguard stock traded up $0.06 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $5.08. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 344,848 shares, compared to its average volume of 304,015. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $5.28 and a 200-day moving average price of $6.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 1.89 and a quick ratio of 0.79. The stock has a market cap of $146.17 million, a P/E ratio of -4.93 and a beta of 0.91. American Vanguard has a one year low of $4.26 and a one year high of $14.28.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Steven D. Macicek purchased 12,000 shares of American Vanguard stock in a transaction on Friday, November 15th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $5.97 per share, for a total transaction of $71,640.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 31,218 shares in the company, valued at approximately $186,371.46. The trade was a 62.44 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 10.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On American Vanguard

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in American Vanguard in the third quarter worth $2,351,000. First Eagle Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of American Vanguard by 67.5% in the 2nd quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 520,398 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $4,475,000 after acquiring an additional 209,800 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of American Vanguard during the 2nd quarter worth about $1,006,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its holdings in American Vanguard by 99.6% during the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 118,492 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $628,000 after purchasing an additional 59,128 shares during the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in American Vanguard by 20.2% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 298,898 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,584,000 after purchasing an additional 50,230 shares during the period. 79.04% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, StockNews.com raised American Vanguard from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, American Vanguard currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $16.67.

American Vanguard Company Profile

American Vanguard Corporation, through its subsidiaries, develops, manufactures, and markets specialty chemicals for agricultural, commercial, and consumer uses in the United States and internationally. It manufactures and formulates chemicals, including insecticides, fungicides, herbicides, soil health, plant nutrition, molluscicides, growth regulators, soil fumigants, and biorationals in liquid, powder, and granular forms for crops, turf and ornamental plants, and human and animal health protection.