Ingevity (NYSE:NGVT) Stock Price Up 7% on Strong Earnings

Shares of Ingevity Co. (NYSE:NGVT - Get Free Report) shot up 7% during mid-day trading on Wednesday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The company traded as high as $49.25 and last traded at $49.06. 36,936 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 81% from the average session volume of 197,522 shares. The stock had previously closed at $45.84.

The company reported $0.95 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.29 by $0.66. The firm had revenue of $298.80 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $297.40 million. Ingevity had a negative net margin of 30.60% and a positive return on equity of 41.44%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently commented on NGVT. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Ingevity from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on shares of Ingevity from $61.00 to $62.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Thursday. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $54.67.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Maple Rock Capital Partners Inc. purchased a new stake in Ingevity in the 4th quarter worth approximately $17,515,000. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Ingevity by 37.7% during the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,457,365 shares of the company's stock valued at $59,388,000 after acquiring an additional 398,800 shares in the last quarter. Vision One Management Partners LP lifted its holdings in shares of Ingevity by 265.0% during the 4th quarter. Vision One Management Partners LP now owns 410,678 shares of the company's stock valued at $16,735,000 after acquiring an additional 298,157 shares in the last quarter. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ingevity by 33.5% during the 3rd quarter. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC now owns 1,185,415 shares of the company's stock valued at $46,231,000 after acquiring an additional 297,135 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Royce & Associates LP increased its stake in Ingevity by 22.4% during the 4th quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 1,142,598 shares of the company's stock worth $46,561,000 after buying an additional 208,921 shares during the period. 91.59% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ingevity Price Performance

The stock has a market cap of $1.68 billion, a PE ratio of -3.89 and a beta of 1.64. The company has a current ratio of 1.87, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.86. The company's 50 day moving average is $43.32 and its 200-day moving average is $41.02.

About Ingevity

Ingevity Corporation manufactures and sells activated carbon products, derivative specialty chemicals, and engineered polymers in North America, the Asia Pacific, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and South America. It operates through three segments: Performance Materials, Performance Chemicals, and Advanced Polymer Technologies.