Tronox (NYSE:TROX) Shares Up 6% – Should You Buy?

Tronox Holdings PLC (NYSE:TROX) shares were up 6% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $8.09 and last traded at $8.1520. Approximately 200,897 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 95% from the average daily volume of 3,684,253 shares. The stock had previously closed at $7.69.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently commented on the stock. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Tronox from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Tronox from $7.50 to $9.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut shares of Tronox from a “buy” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $9.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. BMO Capital Markets restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Tronox in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut shares of Tronox from a “sell (d)” rating to a “sell (d-)” rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $6.80.

Tronox Price Performance

The business’s 50-day moving average price is $8.75 and its 200 day moving average price is $6.47. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.26 billion, a PE ratio of -2.70 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a current ratio of 2.42.

Tronox (NYSE:TROX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported ($0.55) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.48) by ($0.07). The firm had revenue of $760.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $751.38 million. Tronox had a negative net margin of 15.82% and a negative return on equity of 19.93%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned ($0.15) earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Tronox Holdings PLC will post -1.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Tronox Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 8th. Investors of record on Monday, May 11th will be given a $0.05 dividend. This represents a $0.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 11th. Tronox’s dividend payout ratio is -6.85%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Jean Francois Turgeon sold 18,563 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $6.60, for a total value of $122,515.80. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 754,009 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,976,459.40. This represents a 2.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Jeffrey N. Neuman sold 22,965 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $6.59, for a total value of $151,339.35. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 248,831 shares in the company, valued at $1,639,796.29. The trade was a 8.45% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 172,711 shares of company stock valued at $1,145,137 in the last 90 days. 2.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Tronox

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Royal Bank of Canada raised its position in Tronox by 21,419.9% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 1,065,665 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,412,000 after purchasing an additional 1,060,713 shares in the last quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP lifted its holdings in shares of Tronox by 6.7% in the 1st quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 167,851 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,640,000 after acquiring an additional 10,595 shares during the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Tronox by 6.3% in the 1st quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 64,985 shares of the company’s stock worth $635,000 after acquiring an additional 3,861 shares during the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC bought a new stake in shares of Tronox in the 1st quarter worth approximately $2,102,000. Finally, State of Wyoming bought a new stake in shares of Tronox in the 1st quarter worth approximately $464,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.36% of the company’s stock.

Tronox Company Profile

Tronox Holdings plc is a vertically integrated global producer of titanium dioxide (TiO₂) pigment and specialty materials. The company’s operations encompass the full supply chain for TiO₂, from mining and processing titanium-bearing ores—such as ilmenite and rutile—to the production of high-purity pigment for use in paints, coatings, plastics, paper and other industrial applications. In addition to TiO₂, Tronox’s product portfolio includes zircon, rare earth byproducts and other specialty minerals that serve a range of industrial markets.

Tronox operates a network of mines, processing facilities and pigment plants located across North America, Europe, the Middle East, Australia and South Africa.