Short Interest in Minerals Technologies Inc. (NYSE:MTX) Rises By 29.1%

Minerals Technologies Inc. (NYSE:MTX) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in the month of February. As of February 13th, there was short interest totaling 433,293 shares, an increase of 29.1% from the January 29th total of 335,681 shares. Approximately 1.4% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 169,296 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.6 days. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 169,296 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.6 days. Approximately 1.4% of the company’s stock are sold short.

Minerals Technologies Stock Performance

Shares of MTX stock traded up $0.77 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $71.70. The company had a trading volume of 202,266 shares, compared to its average volume of 164,228. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $68.07 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $63.13. Minerals Technologies has a one year low of $49.54 and a one year high of $75.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 2.08 and a quick ratio of 1.45. The company has a market capitalization of $2.23 billion, a PE ratio of -140.59 and a beta of 1.24.

Minerals Technologies (NYSE:MTX) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The basic materials company reported $1.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.28 by ($0.01). Minerals Technologies had a positive return on equity of 10.22% and a negative net margin of 0.89%.The company had revenue of $519.50 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $517.83 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.28 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .3% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that Minerals Technologies will post 6.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Minerals Technologies Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.12 per share. This represents a $0.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 13th. Minerals Technologies’s dividend payout ratio is -94.12%.

Insider Transactions at Minerals Technologies

In other Minerals Technologies news, insider Dj Monagle III sold 23,093 shares of Minerals Technologies stock in a transaction on Monday, December 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.90, for a total transaction of $1,429,456.70. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 84,349 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,221,203.10. This trade represents a 21.49% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 3.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Minerals Technologies

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in Minerals Technologies by 6.8% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 134,906 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $8,223,000 after purchasing an additional 8,535 shares during the period. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV increased its position in Minerals Technologies by 19.3% in the 4th quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 7,060 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $430,000 after buying an additional 1,141 shares during the period. EP Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Minerals Technologies during the fourth quarter worth approximately $275,000. Mackenzie Financial Corp bought a new stake in shares of Minerals Technologies in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $217,000. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Minerals Technologies in the fourth quarter worth $1,096,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.29% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MTX has been the subject of several recent research reports. Truist Financial increased their price objective on Minerals Technologies from $84.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Zacks Research upgraded Minerals Technologies from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 14th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Minerals Technologies in a research report on Monday, December 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $89.00.

About Minerals Technologies

Minerals Technologies Inc develops, produces and processes a broad range of mineral-based products and solutions that serve a variety of industrial applications. Its offerings include bentonite, perlite, precipitated calcium carbonate (PCC), mineral sands, foundry additives, performance minerals and specialty chemicals designed to enhance performance in markets such as paper, steel, construction, oil and gas, environmental remediation and consumer products.

The company operates through several business segments, including Specialty Minerals, Refractory Minerals, Performance Materials and Recycled Materials.