Minerals Technologies Inc. (NYSE:MTX) Short Interest Up 21.2% in February

Minerals Technologies Inc. (NYSE:MTX) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest during the month of February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 344,500 shares, a growth of 21.2% from the February 13th total of 284,300 shares. Currently, 1.1% of the company’s stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 171,600 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.0 days.

Institutional Trading of Minerals Technologies

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of Minerals Technologies by 181.1% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 506 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 326 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP boosted its stake in Minerals Technologies by 536.5% during the fourth quarter. Quarry LP now owns 732 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $56,000 after buying an additional 617 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in Minerals Technologies by 21.4% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,009 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $78,000 after purchasing an additional 178 shares during the last quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Minerals Technologies during the fourth quarter worth about $78,000. Finally, KBC Group NV lifted its stake in Minerals Technologies by 43.9% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,478 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $113,000 after purchasing an additional 451 shares during the last quarter. 97.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Minerals Technologies Trading Down 0.1 %

Shares of MTX stock traded down $0.05 on Wednesday, hitting $67.92. The company had a trading volume of 167,222 shares, compared to its average volume of 151,802. The firm has a market cap of $2.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.11 and a beta of 1.28. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $72.29 and its two-hundred day moving average is $75.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 1.98 and a current ratio of 2.84. Minerals Technologies has a twelve month low of $65.64 and a twelve month high of $90.30.

Minerals Technologies (NYSE:MTX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $1.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.39 by $0.11. Minerals Technologies had a return on equity of 11.49% and a net margin of 7.89%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Minerals Technologies will post 6.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Minerals Technologies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 7th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th were given a dividend of $0.11 per share. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.65%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. Minerals Technologies’s payout ratio is 8.49%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on MTX shares. StockNews.com lowered Minerals Technologies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday. Truist Financial dropped their price objective on Minerals Technologies from $103.00 to $101.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 10th.

Minerals Technologies Company Profile

Minerals Technologies Inc develops, produces, and markets various mineral, mineral-based, and related systems and services. The company operates through two segments, Consumer & Specialties, and Engineered Solutions segments. The Consumer & Specialties segment offers household and personal care products, such as pet litter, personal care, fabric care, edible oil and other fluid purification, animal health, and agricultural products; and specialty additives products, including precipitated calcium carbonate and ground calcium carbonate products that are used in the paper, paperboard, and fiber based packaging industries, as well as automotive, construction, and table and food applications.