Braskem (NYSE:BAK) Shares Gap Up – Here’s What Happened

Braskem S.A. (NYSE:BAK)’s share price gapped up prior to trading on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $2.91, but opened at $3.04. Braskem shares last traded at $3.0650, with a volume of 215,330 shares.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BAK has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. UBS Group downgraded Braskem from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $5.10 to $3.80 in a report on Friday, September 26th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (e+)” rating on shares of Braskem in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Citigroup downgraded shares of Braskem from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, October 10th. Santander lowered Braskem from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 16th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Braskem from $6.00 to $5.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, August 27th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Braskem presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $4.40.

Braskem Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $1.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.33 and a beta of 1.89. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $2.72 and a 200-day moving average price of $3.09.

Braskem (NYSE:BAK) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 12th. The company reported ($0.02) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.48) by $0.46. The company had revenue of $3.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.23 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Braskem S.A. will post -0.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Braskem

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Virtu Financial LLC bought a new position in Braskem in the 1st quarter valued at about $99,000. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its position in shares of Braskem by 12.6% in the 1st quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 110,035 shares of the company’s stock worth $424,000 after purchasing an additional 12,300 shares during the period. Banco BTG Pactual S.A. acquired a new stake in Braskem during the first quarter worth approximately $248,000. Jump Financial LLC boosted its position in shares of Braskem by 114.4% during the 1st quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 37,304 shares of the company’s stock worth $144,000 after purchasing an additional 19,904 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Graham Capital Management L.P. bought a new stake in shares of Braskem during the first quarter valued at approximately $532,000.

Braskem Company Profile

Braskem SA, together with its subsidiaries, produces and sells thermoplastic resins. The company operates through three segments: Brazil, United States and Europe, and Mexico. The Brazil segment produces and sells olefins, including ethylene, polymer and chemical grade propylene, butadiene, and butene-1; benzene, toluene, and xylenes products; fuels, such as automotive gasoline, liquefied petroleum gas, ethyl tertiary-butyl ether, and methyl tertiary-butyl ether; intermediates, such as cumene; aliphatics, aromatics, and hydrogenated solvents; and specialties comprising isoprene, dicyclopentadiene, piperylene, nonene, tetramer, polyisobutylene, and hydrocarbon resins.