Sasol (NYSE:SSL) Shares Gap Up – Time to Buy?

Sasol Ltd. (NYSE:SSL) shares gapped up before the market opened on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $10.90, but opened at $11.31. Sasol shares last traded at $11.4050, with a volume of 209,139 shares traded.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. Zacks Research downgraded Sasol from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. UBS Group upgraded shares of Sasol from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, June 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of Sasol in a research report on Monday, June 15th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Sasol from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a report on Friday, July 10th. Finally, Investec began coverage on shares of Sasol in a research report on Wednesday, June 17th. They issued a “sell” rating for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Reduce”.

Sasol Stock Up 3.6%

The company has a quick ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 1.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $11.87 and its 200 day simple moving average is $10.48.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Sarushen Dhanapalan Pillay sold 2,182 shares of Sasol stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.14, for a total value of $28,671.48. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 16,313 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $214,352.82. The trade was a 11.80% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Sasol

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Sasol by 4.6% in the first quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 20,894 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $271,000 after acquiring an additional 915 shares in the last quarter. Laird Norton Wetherby Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Sasol by 5.1% during the third quarter. Laird Norton Wetherby Wealth Management LLC now owns 32,723 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $204,000 after purchasing an additional 1,593 shares in the last quarter. PDS Planning Inc lifted its holdings in shares of Sasol by 15.3% during the 4th quarter. PDS Planning Inc now owns 14,269 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $93,000 after purchasing an additional 1,893 shares during the last quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Sasol by 3.9% during the 3rd quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 62,848 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $391,000 after purchasing an additional 2,334 shares during the last quarter. Finally, US Bancorp DE boosted its position in shares of Sasol by 11.5% in the 3rd quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 26,354 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $164,000 after purchasing an additional 2,719 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 1.21% of the company’s stock.

About Sasol

Sasol Limited is an integrated energy and chemical company headquartered in Johannesburg, South Africa. The company’s core operations encompass the conversion of natural gas, coal and heavy hydrocarbons into liquid fuels and a wide array of chemical products. Sasol leverages proprietary Fischer-Tropsch and gas-to-liquids (GTL) technologies to deliver cleaner-burning diesel, jet fuel and naphtha, alongside solvents, surfactants and specialty polymers for industrial and consumer applications.

In addition to its GTL business, Sasol operates downstream facilities for the manufacture of alpha olefins, ethylene, propylene and other base-chemical intermediates.