Axalta Coating Systems (NYSE:AXTA) Reaches New 1-Year High at $34.46

Axalta Coating Systems Ltd. (NYSE:AXTA)’s share price reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $34.46 and last traded at $34.44, with a volume of 724274 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $34.28.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of Axalta Coating Systems in a research note on Friday, March 1st. They set a “peer perform” rating on the stock. UBS Group lowered Axalta Coating Systems from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $35.00 to $36.00 in a research report on Monday, January 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Axalta Coating Systems from $35.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 9th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Axalta Coating Systems from $31.00 to $33.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Axalta Coating Systems currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $34.42.

Axalta Coating Systems Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.96, a current ratio of 1.98 and a quick ratio of 1.46. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $32.54 and its 200 day moving average price is $30.86. The company has a market cap of $7.57 billion, a PE ratio of 28.66, a P/E/G ratio of 1.30 and a beta of 1.50.

Axalta Coating Systems (NYSE:AXTA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 8th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.43 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.44 by ($0.01). Axalta Coating Systems had a net margin of 5.16% and a return on equity of 20.70%. The firm had revenue of $1.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.29 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.38 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that Axalta Coating Systems Ltd. will post 1.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in Axalta Coating Systems by 9.0% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,657,696 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $125,292,000 after buying an additional 382,949 shares in the last quarter. Hawk Ridge Capital Management LP raised its position in shares of Axalta Coating Systems by 49.3% during the 3rd quarter. Hawk Ridge Capital Management LP now owns 2,952,198 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $79,414,000 after buying an additional 974,973 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Axalta Coating Systems by 11.7% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 13,470,860 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $362,366,000 after acquiring an additional 1,415,723 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its stake in Axalta Coating Systems by 11.5% in the third quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 2,644,246 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $71,130,000 after acquiring an additional 272,455 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Prospector Partners LLC lifted its stake in Axalta Coating Systems by 10.2% during the third quarter. Prospector Partners LLC now owns 323,930 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $8,714,000 after purchasing an additional 29,930 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.28% of the company’s stock.

Axalta Coating Systems Company Profile

Axalta Coating Systems Ltd., through its subsidiaries, manufactures, markets, and distributes high-performance coatings systems in North America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Asia Pacific, and Latin America. It operates through two segments, Performance Coatings and Mobility Coatings. The company offers water and solvent-borne products and systems to repair damaged vehicles for independent body shops, multi-shop operators, and original equipment manufacturer (OEM) dealership body shops.