The AZEK Company Inc. (NYSE:AZEK) Sees Large Decline in Short Interest

The AZEK Company Inc. (NYSE:AZEK - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a significant drop in short interest in the month of September. As of September 30th, there was short interest totalling 5,470,000 shares, a drop of 10.0% from the September 15th total of 6,080,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,970,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.8 days. Currently, 3.9% of the shares of the company are sold short.

AZEK Stock Performance

NYSE AZEK traded down $0.94 on Thursday, hitting $43.45. The stock had a trading volume of 1,264,013 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,741,583. AZEK has a one year low of $25.03 and a one year high of $50.78. The company has a quick ratio of 2.11, a current ratio of 3.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The stock has a market cap of $6.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.60, a P/E/G ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 1.88. The company's 50-day moving average is $43.37 and its two-hundred day moving average is $44.56.

AZEK (NYSE:AZEK - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The company reported $0.42 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.36 by $0.06. AZEK had a net margin of 11.35% and a return on equity of 13.38%. The firm had revenue of $434.40 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $396.89 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.29 EPS. AZEK's quarterly revenue was up 12.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that AZEK will post 1.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Pamela J. Edwards purchased 600 shares of AZEK stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 15th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $41.70 per share, for a total transaction of $25,020.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 8,708 shares in the company, valued at approximately $363,123.60. The trade was a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other AZEK news, CEO Jesse G. Singh sold 20,000 shares of AZEK stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.47, for a total value of $829,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 186,705 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,742,656.35. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Pamela J. Edwards bought 600 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 15th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $41.70 per share, with a total value of $25,020.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 8,708 shares in the company, valued at $363,123.60. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 3.10% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in AZEK during the first quarter valued at approximately $11,683,000. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in AZEK by 3.2% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 13,482,323 shares of the company's stock valued at $677,082,000 after purchasing an additional 413,297 shares during the last quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co lifted its stake in AZEK by 180.4% during the first quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 36,912 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,856,000 after purchasing an additional 23,746 shares during the last quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. MA lifted its stake in AZEK by 26.3% during the first quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. MA now owns 237,326 shares of the company's stock valued at $11,919,000 after purchasing an additional 49,460 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Duality Advisers LP acquired a new stake in AZEK during the first quarter valued at approximately $1,357,000. 97.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on AZEK shares. Benchmark restated a "buy" rating and set a $55.00 target price on shares of AZEK in a report on Friday, August 9th. Loop Capital lowered shares of AZEK from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $47.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Friday, October 4th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price objective on shares of AZEK from $49.00 to $46.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 8th. UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of AZEK from $47.00 to $43.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price objective on shares of AZEK from $56.00 to $50.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $47.94.

AZEK Company Profile

The AZEK Company Inc engages in the design, manufacturing, and selling of building products for residential, commercial, and industrial markets in the United States and Canada. It operates through two segments: Residential and Commercial. The Residential segment designs and manufactures engineered outdoor living products, such as decking, railing, trim and molding, siding and cladding, pergolas and cabanas, and accessories under the TimberTech, AZEK Exteriors, VERSATEX, ULTRALOX, StruXure, and INTEX brands.