Valhi (NYSE:VHI) Reaches New 52-Week High - Should You Buy?

Valhi, Inc. (NYSE:VHI - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week high on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $37.75 and last traded at $37.40, with a volume of 7701 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $36.33.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. StockNews.com raised Valhi from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, August 12th. Barclays boosted their price objective on Valhi from $11.00 to $20.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th.

Valhi Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 2.24, a current ratio of 3.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $29.99 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $21.85. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 1,863.00 and a beta of 1.29.

Valhi (NYSE:VHI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 8th. The basic materials company reported $0.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.29 by $0.41. Valhi had a return on equity of 2.02% and a net margin of 1.27%. The business had revenue of $559.70 million during the quarter.

Valhi Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 26th. Investors of record on Friday, September 6th were given a $0.08 dividend. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.86%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 6th. Valhi's payout ratio is currently 1,600.00%.

Institutional Trading of Valhi

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in VHI. Ritholtz Wealth Management purchased a new position in Valhi during the third quarter worth about $244,000. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Valhi by 28.4% in the first quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 20,879 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $359,000 after acquiring an additional 4,620 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC increased its position in shares of Valhi by 8.1% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 117,129 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $2,012,000 after acquiring an additional 8,750 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 3.83% of the company's stock.

About Valhi

Valhi, Inc engages in the chemicals, component products, and real estate management and development businesses in Europe, North America, the Asia Pacific, and internationally. The company's Chemicals segment produces and markets titanium dioxide pigments (TiO2), which are white inorganic pigments used in various applications by paint, plastics, decorative laminate, and paper manufacturers.