Tronox (NYSE:TROX) Shares Gap Up - Time to Buy?

Tronox Holdings plc (NYSE:TROX - Get Free Report) shares gapped up prior to trading on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $13.65, but opened at $14.42. Tronox shares last traded at $14.42, with a volume of 238,737 shares trading hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price objective on shares of Tronox from $18.00 to $16.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, September 19th. Barclays lowered their price objective on Tronox from $19.00 to $18.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their target price on Tronox from $22.00 to $21.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, September 30th. UBS Group upgraded Tronox from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price target for the company from $17.00 to $19.00 in a report on Thursday. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Tronox from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, August 5th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Tronox currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $17.83.

Tronox Stock Up 5.1 %

The firm has a market cap of $2.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -6.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 26.51 and a beta of 1.64. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $13.35 and a 200-day moving average of $16.15. The company has a current ratio of 2.98, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44.

Tronox (NYSE:TROX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $0.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.18 by ($0.11). The firm had revenue of $820.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $848.04 million. Tronox had a negative net margin of 2.14% and a negative return on equity of 3.40%. The business's revenue was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.16 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Tronox Holdings plc will post 0.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Tronox Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 27th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 26th were paid a $0.125 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 26th. This represents a $0.50 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.48%. Tronox's payout ratio is currently -22.42%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in TROX. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Tronox by 29.5% in the fourth quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC now owns 1,234,263 shares of the company's stock worth $17,477,000 after purchasing an additional 281,110 shares during the period. Quadrature Capital Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Tronox in the fourth quarter valued at $353,000. Nomura Holdings Inc. bought a new position in Tronox during the fourth quarter valued at about $338,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its holdings in Tronox by 9.2% during the first quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 10,232 shares of the company's stock worth $178,000 after acquiring an additional 861 shares during the period. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp raised its position in Tronox by 14.3% in the first quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,119,037 shares of the company's stock worth $19,415,000 after acquiring an additional 139,956 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 73.36% of the company's stock.

About Tronox

Tronox Holdings plc operates as a vertically integrated manufacturer of TiO2 pigment in North America, South and Central America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia Pacific. The company operates titanium-bearing mineral sand mines; and engages in beneficiation and smelting operations. It offers TiO2 pigment; ultrafine specialty TiO2; zircon; feedstock; pig iron; monazite; titanium tetrachloride; and other products.