Tronox (NYSE:TROX) Shares Down 4.6% – Should You Sell?

Shares of Tronox Holdings PLC (NYSE:TROX) were down 4.6% during mid-day trading on Wednesday. The company traded as low as $3.26 and last traded at $3.2350. Approximately 272,827 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 91% from the average session volume of 3,076,645 shares. The stock had previously closed at $3.39.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on TROX shares. Mizuho lowered their target price on Tronox from $5.50 to $4.50 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, September 30th. Zacks Research cut shares of Tronox from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 15th. UBS Group cut their target price on shares of Tronox from $7.00 to $4.50 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target on shares of Tronox from $6.50 to $4.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 9th. Finally, Truist Financial dropped their target price on Tronox from $7.00 to $4.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and five have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $5.33.

Tronox Stock Performance

The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $4.55 and its 200 day simple moving average is $6.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.62, a current ratio of 2.55 and a quick ratio of 0.81. The firm has a market capitalization of $515.03 million, a PE ratio of -0.93 and a beta of 0.92.

Tronox (NYSE:TROX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported ($0.51) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.38) by ($0.13). The firm had revenue of $868.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $832.59 million. Tronox had a negative return on equity of 24.34% and a negative net margin of 17.96%. Tronox’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted ($0.28) earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Tronox Holdings PLC will post -1.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Tronox Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 9th. Investors of record on Monday, August 10th were paid a dividend of $0.05 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 10th. This represents a $0.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.2%. Tronox’s payout ratio is currently -5.78%.

Institutional Trading of Tronox

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of TROX. CoreCap Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Tronox during the third quarter worth $30,000. Vontobel Holding Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Tronox during the third quarter worth approximately $43,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio acquired a new stake in shares of Tronox during the second quarter worth $114,000. Abel Hall LLC acquired a new stake in Tronox in the first quarter valued at $121,000. Finally, R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Tronox in the 1st quarter worth about $155,000. 73.36% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Tronox

Tronox Holdings plc (NYSE:TROX) is a global producer of titanium dioxide pigment, a white pigment used to provide brightness, opacity and durability in products such as paints and coatings, plastics, paper and specialty materials. The company also produces titanium feedstocks, including titanium slag and synthetic rutile, as well as zircon and other mineral-sands products.

Tronox operates an integrated business that spans the mining and processing of mineral sands, the production of titanium feedstocks and the manufacture of titanium dioxide pigment.