Sasol Ltd. (NYSE:SSL) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

Sasol Ltd. (NYSE:SSL) was the target of a large increase in short interest in January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totaling 4,187,386 shares, an increase of 21.2% from the December 31st total of 3,455,336 shares. Approximately 0.7% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 1,140,173 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.7 days. Based on an average trading volume of 1,140,173 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.7 days. Approximately 0.7% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sasol

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Advisors Preferred LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Sasol during the fourth quarter worth $117,000. Pekin Hardy Strauss Inc. acquired a new position in Sasol in the 4th quarter worth about $189,000. UBS Group AG raised its stake in shares of Sasol by 52.0% during the 4th quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 835,052 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $5,436,000 after purchasing an additional 285,807 shares in the last quarter. PDS Planning Inc raised its stake 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 worth $93,000 after purchasing an additional 1,893 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ritholtz Wealth Management acquired a new stake in shares of Sasol during the 4th quarter valued at about $150,000. 1.21% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed an “underweight” rating on shares of Sasol in a report on Friday, January 16th. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Sasol in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Sasol from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Sasol from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Sasol presently has an average rating of “Reduce”.

Sasol Stock Up 1.8%

Shares of NYSE SSL traded up $0.13 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $7.19. The company had a trading volume of 2,752,377 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,543,951. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 1.87 and a quick ratio of 1.27. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $6.59 and a two-hundred day moving average of $6.32. Sasol has a 12-month low of $2.78 and a 12-month high of $7.66.

Sasol Company Profile

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.