Minerals Technologies (NYSE:MTX) Share Price Crosses Above 200-Day Moving Average – Should You Sell?

Minerals Technologies Inc. (NYSE:MTX) crossed above its two hundred day moving average during trading on Monday . The stock has a two hundred day moving average of $63.54 and traded as high as $68.19. Minerals Technologies shares last traded at $66.1160, with a volume of 238,053 shares.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on MTX. Zacks Research raised Minerals Technologies from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. Truist Financial increased their price target on Minerals Technologies from $84.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Minerals Technologies in a research note on Monday, December 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $89.00.

Minerals Technologies Stock Up 3.6%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 1.45 and a current ratio of 2.08. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -137.75 and a beta of 1.24. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $69.48 and a 200 day moving average price of $63.61.

Minerals Technologies (NYSE:MTX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 29th. The basic materials company reported $1.27 earnings per share 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 business had revenue of $519.50 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $517.83 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.28 EPS. The company’s revenue was up .3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Minerals Technologies Inc. will post 6.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Minerals Technologies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 6th. Investors of record on Friday, February 13th were paid a $0.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 13th. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. Minerals Technologies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -94.12%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Dj Monagle III sold 23,093 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the insider owned 84,349 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,221,203.10. The trade was a 21.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 3.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Minerals Technologies

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in shares of Minerals Technologies by 3.1% during the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,324,392 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $82,271,000 after purchasing an additional 39,860 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its holdings in shares of Minerals Technologies by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,221,398 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $74,444,000 after acquiring an additional 6,458 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Minerals Technologies by 0.6% in the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 911,831 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $50,220,000 after acquiring an additional 5,348 shares in the last quarter. Brandes Investment Partners LP boosted its stake in shares of Minerals Technologies by 22.9% during the fourth quarter. Brandes Investment Partners LP now owns 819,908 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $49,973,000 after acquiring an additional 152,950 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Minerals Technologies by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 597,297 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $36,405,000 after acquiring an additional 15,467 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.29% of the company’s stock.

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.