Minerals Technologies (NYSE:MTX) Hits New 12-Month High – What’s Next?

Shares of Minerals Technologies Inc. (NYSE:MTX) hit a new 52-week high on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $75.30 and last traded at $75.4950, with a volume of 4274 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $74.16.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have weighed in on MTX shares. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on Minerals Technologies from $84.00 to $89.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Minerals Technologies from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, October 18th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Minerals Technologies in a research report on Monday, December 22nd. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Minerals Technologies from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $89.00.

Minerals Technologies Price Performance

The stock has a market cap of $2.28 billion, a PE ratio of -143.86 and a beta of 1.27. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $64.77 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $61.81. The company has a current ratio of 2.08, a quick ratio of 1.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55.

Minerals Technologies (NYSE:MTX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The basic materials company reported $1.27 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.28 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $519.50 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $517.83 million. Minerals Technologies had a negative net margin of 0.89% and a positive return on equity of 10.22%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.28 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Minerals Technologies Inc. will post 6.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Minerals Technologies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 6th. Investors of record on Friday, February 13th will be paid a $0.12 dividend. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 13th. Minerals Technologies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -94.12%.

Insider Transactions at Minerals Technologies

In related news, insider Dj Monagle III sold 23,093 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.90, for a total transaction of $1,429,456.70. Following the sale, the insider owned 84,349 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,221,203.10. The trade was a 21.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Brett Argirakis sold 6,501 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.68, for a total transaction of $381,478.68. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 27,602 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,619,685.36. This trade represents a 19.06% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Company insiders own 3.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Minerals Technologies

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. First Horizon Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Minerals Technologies by 161.1% in the second quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 590 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 364 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in Minerals Technologies by 626.8% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 596 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 514 shares in the last quarter. First Horizon Corp bought a new stake in Minerals Technologies during the 3rd quarter valued at about $35,000. Torren Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Minerals Technologies in the fourth quarter worth approximately $50,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Minerals Technologies by 44.6% during the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,011 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $56,000 after buying an additional 312 shares during the last quarter. 97.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Minerals Technologies Company Profile

Minerals Technologies Inc develops, produces and processes a broad range of mineral-based products and solutions that serve a variety of industrial applications. Its offerings include bentonite, perlite, precipitated calcium carbonate (PCC), mineral sands, foundry additives, performance minerals and specialty chemicals designed to enhance performance in markets such as paper, steel, construction, oil and gas, environmental remediation and consumer products.

The company operates through several business segments, including Specialty Minerals, Refractory Minerals, Performance Materials and Recycled Materials.