Renaissance Technologies LLC Sells 157,141 Shares of NPK International Inc. $NPKI

Renaissance Technologies LLC trimmed its stake in NPK International Inc. (NYSE:NPKI) by 30.3% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 362,167 shares of the company’s stock after selling 157,141 shares during the quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC owned approximately 0.43% of NPK International worth $5,248,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in NPKI. Ameriprise Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of NPK International in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $51,903,000. Wasatch Advisors LP bought a new position in shares of NPK International in the second quarter valued at $25,341,000. Conversant Capital LLC acquired a new position in NPK International during the second quarter worth $23,103,000. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans acquired a new position in NPK International during the fourth quarter worth $18,926,000. Finally, Cannell Capital LLC bought a new stake in NPK International during the second quarter worth $12,917,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.81% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have commented on the stock. B. Riley Financial reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of NPK International in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of NPK International from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $14.17.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other NPK International news, VP Lori Briggs sold 8,325 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $14.75, for a total value of $122,793.75. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 247,165 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,645,683.75. The trade was a 3.26% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Matthew Lanigan sold 167,375 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $14.43, for a total transaction of $2,415,221.25. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 254,699 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,675,306.57. This represents a 39.66% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 188,159 shares of company stock worth $2,721,117 in the last quarter. 4.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

NPK International Stock Down 0.2%

NPKI opened at $13.58 on Thursday. NPK International Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $8.84 and a fifty-two week high of $16.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 1.40 and a current ratio of 1.61. The company has a market capitalization of $1.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.15 and a beta of 1.26. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $14.47 and a 200-day moving average of $14.51.

NPK International (NYSE:NPKI) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The company reported $0.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.13 by $0.02. NPK International had a net margin of 14.19% and a return on equity of 11.31%. The company had revenue of $81.58 million during the quarter. On average, equities analysts expect that NPK International Inc. will post 0.55 EPS for the current year.

NPK International Company Profile

NPK International, Inc (NYSE: NPKI) is a specialty chemical distributor supplying a broad range of industrial and performance materials across diverse end-markets. Its product portfolio includes acetic acid and derivatives, alcohols, ketones, esters, glycol ethers, glycols, specialty solvents, select inorganic chemicals and crop-protection intermediates. These materials serve industries such as coatings, adhesives and sealants, oil and gas, personal care, pharmaceuticals, agrochemicals and water treatment.

The company places a strong emphasis on supply-chain security and technical service, maintaining warehousing, logistics support and laboratory capabilities at its regional distribution centers.