Braskem (NYSE:BAK) Shares Gap Up – Here’s Why

Braskem S.A. (NYSE:BAK)’s share price gapped up prior to trading on Tuesday. The stock had previously closed at $1.10, but opened at $1.17. Braskem shares last traded at $1.2750, with a volume of 2,404,140 shares.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have issued reports on the stock. HSBC downgraded shares of Braskem from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $6.50 to $1.50 in a report on Monday, September 28th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Braskem to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, October 17th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (e+)” rating on shares of Braskem in a research note on Thursday, October 15th. UBS Group lowered Braskem from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $4.00 to $1.50 in a report on Tuesday, September 15th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded Braskem from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and five have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Strong Sell” and an average target price of $2.56.

Braskem Stock Performance

The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $1.77 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $3.07. The stock has a market cap of $544.09 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -0.56, a P/E/G ratio of 0.10 and a beta of 1.56.

Braskem (NYSE:BAK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, June 26th. The company reported $1.61 EPS for the quarter. Braskem had a negative return on equity of 67.75% and a negative net margin of 7.28%. The company had revenue of $4.20 billion during the quarter. Equities analysts expect that Braskem S.A. will post 1.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Braskem

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BAK. Brooklands Fund Management Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Braskem during the first quarter worth $2,013,000. Bank of America Corp DE increased its holdings in Braskem by 178,471.4% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 50,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $183,000 after purchasing an additional 49,972 shares in the last quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP raised its position in Braskem by 192.8% in the second quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP now owns 68,198 shares of the company’s stock valued at $166,000 after purchasing an additional 44,905 shares during the last quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC bought a new position in Braskem in the first quarter valued at about $157,000. Finally, Ramsey Quantitative Systems acquired a new stake in shares of Braskem during the second quarter valued at about $155,000.

Braskem Company Profile

Braskem SA is a Brazil-based petrochemical company that produces basic chemicals and thermoplastic resins used in packaging, construction, automotive components, consumer goods, agriculture and other industrial applications. Its product portfolio includes polyethylene, polypropylene and polyvinyl chloride, as well as inputs such as ethylene, propylene and other petrochemical intermediates.

Founded in 2002 through the combination of several Brazilian petrochemical businesses, Braskem developed into one of Latin America’s largest petrochemical producers.