American Vanguard Co. (NYSE:AVD) Shares Sold by Vanguard Group Inc.

Vanguard Group Inc. trimmed its position in shares of American Vanguard Co. (NYSE:AVD) by 2.4% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,958,628 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 47,451 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned approximately 6.81% of American Vanguard worth $21,408,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its holdings in American Vanguard by 477.2% during the 1st quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 1,166 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 964 shares in the last quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors grew its holdings in American Vanguard by 85.0% during the 1st quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 1,417 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 651 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Middle East FZE acquired a new position in American Vanguard during the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new position in American Vanguard during the 1st quarter worth $80,000. Finally, Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio grew its holdings in American Vanguard by 345.2% during the 3rd quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 4,594 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $86,000 after acquiring an additional 3,562 shares in the last quarter. 79.04% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AVD has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Roth Capital reissued a “buy” rating on shares of American Vanguard in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. StockNews.com raised shares of American Vanguard from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 18th. Finally, Roth Mkm lifted their price target on shares of American Vanguard from $13.00 to $16.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 15th.

American Vanguard Trading Down 3.7 %

NYSE AVD opened at $11.69 on Friday. American Vanguard Co. has a one year low of $8.41 and a one year high of $21.86. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $11.52 and a 200-day simple moving average of $10.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 1.87. The firm has a market capitalization of $336.67 million, a PE ratio of 43.30 and a beta of 1.00.

American Vanguard (NYSE:AVD) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 14th. The basic materials company reported $0.25 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.25. The firm had revenue of $172.20 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $172.70 million. American Vanguard had a net margin of 1.30% and a return on equity of 2.05%. On average, equities analysts forecast that American Vanguard Co. will post 0.77 earnings per share for the current year.

American Vanguard Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 27th were given a $0.03 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 26th. This represents a $0.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.03%. American Vanguard’s dividend payout ratio is presently 44.45%.

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.