Sasol (NYSE:SSL) Stock Price Up 6.1% on Analyst Upgrade

Sasol Ltd. (NYSE:SSL) shares shot up 6.1% during trading on Friday after Zacks Research upgraded the stock from a strong sell rating to a hold rating. The company traded as high as $7.41 and last traded at $7.4820. 797,617 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 48% from the average session volume of 1,533,439 shares. The stock had previously closed at $7.05.

Other analysts have also issued reports about the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated an “underweight” rating on shares of Sasol in a research note on Friday, January 16th. Wall Street Zen raised Sasol from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Sasol in a report on Wednesday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Reduce”.

Institutional Trading of Sasol

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Ritholtz Wealth Management acquired a new stake in Sasol in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $150,000. Signaturefd LLC grew its holdings in Sasol by 17.9% in the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 37,729 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $246,000 after buying an additional 5,741 shares in the last quarter. Tuttle Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Sasol during the 4th quarter valued at about $90,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in Sasol by 1,627.3% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,025,934 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $6,381,000 after purchasing an additional 966,539 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ariadne Wealth Management LP increased its position in shares of Sasol by 82.4% during the 3rd quarter. Ariadne Wealth Management LP now owns 21,467 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $147,000 after purchasing an additional 9,695 shares during the period. 1.21% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Sasol Trading Up 6.2%

The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $6.54 and its 200-day simple moving average is $6.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 1.87 and a quick ratio of 1.27.

Sasol Company Profile

Sasol Limited is an integrated energy and chemical company headquartered in Johannesburg, South Africa. The company’s core operations encompass the conversion of natural gas, coal and heavy hydrocarbons into liquid fuels and a wide array of chemical products. Sasol leverages proprietary Fischer-Tropsch and gas-to-liquids (GTL) technologies to deliver cleaner-burning diesel, jet fuel and naphtha, alongside solvents, surfactants and specialty polymers for industrial and consumer applications.

In addition to its GTL business, Sasol operates downstream facilities for the manufacture of alpha olefins, ethylene, propylene and other base-chemical intermediates.