Ecovyst Inc. (NYSE:ECVT) Short Interest Up 28.0% in April

Ecovyst Inc. (NYSE:ECVT) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest in the month of April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totalling 2,100,000 shares, a growth of 28.0% from the March 31st total of 1,640,000 shares. Approximately 1.8% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 766,200 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.7 days.

Ecovyst Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of ECVT stock opened at $9.95 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.69, a current ratio of 2.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22. The company has a market capitalization of $1.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.31, a P/E/G ratio of 0.51 and a beta of 1.01. Ecovyst has a 12-month low of $8.26 and a 12-month high of $12.35. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $9.97 and a 200 day moving average price of $9.61.

Ecovyst (NYSE:ECVT) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 28th. The company reported $0.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.23 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $172.80 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $168.31 million. Ecovyst had a net margin of 10.30% and a return on equity of 11.08%. The business’s revenue was down 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.23 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Ecovyst will post 0.81 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Citigroup increased their price objective on Ecovyst from $11.50 to $13.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ecovyst

In related news, Director Susan F. Ward sold 24,436 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $10.28, for a total value of $251,202.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 67,587 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $694,794.36. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.59% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ecovyst

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Ecovyst by 11.7% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 10,795,380 shares of the company’s stock worth $106,227,000 after purchasing an additional 1,128,473 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Ecovyst by 29.1% during the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,293,164 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,405,000 after buying an additional 742,496 shares during the period. Grizzlyrock Capital LLC acquired a new position in Ecovyst in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $4,895,000. Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC lifted its holdings in Ecovyst by 27.1% in the third quarter. Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC now owns 1,649,653 shares of the company’s stock valued at $16,233,000 after buying an additional 351,557 shares during the period. Finally, Confluence Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Ecovyst in the first quarter valued at approximately $3,581,000. Institutional investors own 86.69% of the company’s stock.

Ecovyst Company Profile

Ecovyst Inc offers specialty catalysts and services in the United States and internationally. The company operates in two segments, Ecoservices and Advanced Materials & Catalysts. The Ecoservices segment provides sulfuric acid recycling services and end-to-end logistics for production of alkylate for refineries; and virgin sulfuric acid for mining, water treatment, and industrial applications.