AdvanSix (NYSE:ASIX) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

AdvanSix (NYSE:ASIX) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest in March. As of March 13th, there was short interest totaling 780,595 shares, a growth of 37.6% from the February 26th total of 567,388 shares. Approximately 3.1% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 625,830 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.2 days.

AdvanSix Trading Down 1.9%

Shares of ASIX stock traded down $0.45 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $23.98. 379,418 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 683,873. AdvanSix has a 12-month low of $14.10 and a 12-month high of $25.53. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $18.86 and its 200-day moving average price is $18.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $644.26 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.25 and a beta of 1.66.

AdvanSix (NYSE:ASIX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 20th. The company reported $0.03 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.06) by $0.09. The company had revenue of $359.95 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $340.85 million. AdvanSix had a net margin of 3.24% and a return on equity of 6.97%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that AdvanSix will post 4 earnings per share for the current year.

AdvanSix Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 23rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 9th were issued a $0.16 dividend. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 9th. AdvanSix’s dividend payout ratio is presently 35.36%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AdvanSix

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of ASIX. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in AdvanSix during the 2nd quarter valued at $29,000. Osaic Holdings Inc. lifted its position in shares of AdvanSix by 60.2% during the second quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 1,285 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 483 shares during the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. lifted its position in shares of AdvanSix by 90.0% during the fourth quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 2,358 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 1,117 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its stake in shares of AdvanSix by 185.2% during the third quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 2,142 shares of the company’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 1,391 shares during the period. Finally, CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of AdvanSix by 27,537.5% during the third quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 2,211 shares of the company’s stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 2,203 shares during the period. 86.39% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ASIX has been the subject of several recent research reports. Wall Street Zen lowered AdvanSix from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, March 9th. Loop Capital set a $25.00 price objective on AdvanSix in a research note on Thursday, March 12th. Weiss Ratings upgraded AdvanSix from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their target price on AdvanSix from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $25.67.

About AdvanSix

AdvanSix, Inc (NYSE: ASIX) is an integrated chemical manufacturer specializing in the production of nylon 6 intermediates and related co‐products. Established as a publicly traded spin‐off from Honeywell Specialty Chemicals in June 2016, the company is headquartered in Parsippany, New Jersey.

The company’s principal product is caprolactam, the key building block for nylon 6 resin, used in fibers and engineering plastics across industries. In addition to caprolactam and nylon 6 resin, AdvanSix produces ammonium sulfate fertilizer and industrial chemicals such as phenol and acetone.