Sasol (NYSE:SSL) Shares Gap Down – Here’s What Happened

Sasol Ltd. (NYSE:SSL) gapped down before the market opened on Monday. The stock had previously closed at $14.83, but opened at $13.57. Sasol shares last traded at $13.7920, with a volume of 460,485 shares.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings raised Sasol from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Thursday, October 8th. Bank of America raised Sasol from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 9th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Sasol from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, September 5th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Sasol from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, August 31st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold”.

Sasol Trading Down 5.3%

The company has a quick ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 1.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $14.80 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $12.04.

Sasol (NYSE:SSL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 14th. The oil and gas company reported $0.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The company had revenue of $4.61 billion for the quarter. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Sasol Ltd. will post 2.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Sasol

In related news, CFO Walt Bruns sold 7,890 shares of Sasol stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.70, for a total transaction of $100,203.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 54,628 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $693,775.60. This trade represents a 12.62% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Vuyo Dominic Kahla sold 22,608 shares of Sasol stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.70, for a total value of $287,121.60. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 114,792 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,457,858.40. The trade was a 16.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 60,412 shares of company stock worth $800,983 in the last ninety days. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Sasol

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Ritholtz Wealth Management boosted its position in shares of Sasol by 72.0% in the third quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 165,029 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $2,281,000 after acquiring an additional 69,090 shares during the period. D Orazio & Associates Inc. grew its stake in shares of Sasol by 39.0% in the third quarter. D Orazio & Associates Inc. now owns 16,014 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $221,000 after acquiring an additional 4,496 shares in the last quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA acquired a new position in shares of Sasol in the third quarter valued at about $9,179,000. Parallel Advisors LLC increased its position in Sasol by 8.5% during the third quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 21,958 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $303,000 after acquiring an additional 1,722 shares during the period. Finally, Ascent Group LLC bought a new position in Sasol during the third quarter worth about $152,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 1.21% of the company’s stock.

Sasol Company Profile

Sasol is an integrated energy and chemicals company headquartered in South Africa. Founded in 1950, it developed expertise in converting coal and natural gas into liquid fuels and chemical products, including through Fischer-Tropsch technology.

The company produces and markets fuels, such as gasoline, diesel and aviation fuel, as well as a broad range of chemicals used in industries including manufacturing, agriculture and consumer goods. Its activities span energy and chemicals value chains, from feedstock processing to product marketing.

Sasol operates primarily in South Africa and also has operations in countries including the United States and Mozambique, with products sold to customers in markets around the world.