StockNews.com Upgrades Axalta Coating Systems (NYSE:AXTA) to Strong-Buy

Axalta Coating Systems (NYSE:AXTA) was upgraded by equities research analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. KeyCorp reiterated a “sector weight” rating on shares of Axalta Coating Systems in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of Axalta Coating Systems from $46.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Citigroup cut shares of Axalta Coating Systems from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $45.00 to $41.00 in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on shares of Axalta Coating Systems from $44.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Axalta Coating Systems from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $43.08.

Axalta Coating Systems Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE:AXTA traded up $0.08 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $37.64. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,434,094 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,853,733. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $36.29 and a 200-day moving average of $36.47. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.15, a PEG ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 1.46. The company has a quick ratio of 1.42, a current ratio of 2.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74. Axalta Coating Systems has a 12-month low of $30.40 and a 12-month high of $41.65.

Axalta Coating Systems (NYSE:AXTA) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.60 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.51 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $1.31 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.31 billion. Axalta Coating Systems had a net margin of 7.41% and a return on equity of 26.29%. The company’s revenue was up 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.43 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Axalta Coating Systems will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Axalta Coating Systems by 116.3% during the 4th quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC now owns 824 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 443 shares during the last quarter. True Wealth Design LLC bought a new stake in Axalta Coating Systems in the third quarter worth $37,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. lifted its position in Axalta Coating Systems by 35.2% in the third quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 1,021 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 266 shares during the last quarter. Millburn Ridgefield Corp bought a new stake in Axalta Coating Systems in the third quarter worth $41,000. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its position in Axalta Coating Systems by 60.7% in the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 1,318 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 498 shares during the last quarter. 98.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Axalta Coating Systems

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. The company operates through two segments, Performance Coatings and Mobility Coatings.