Insider Buying: SunCoke Energy (NYSE:SXC) SVP Purchases 12,500 Shares of Stock

SunCoke Energy, Inc. (NYSE:SXC) SVP Phillip Michael Hardesty bought 12,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 25th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $5.83 per share, with a total value of $72,875.00. Following the purchase, the senior vice president owned 298,677 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,741,286.91. This represents a 4.37% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website.

SunCoke Energy Price Performance

Shares of SXC traded down $0.11 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $5.69. The company had a trading volume of 1,803,769 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,246,599. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $7.58 and its 200 day simple moving average is $7.55. SunCoke Energy, Inc. has a 1-year low of $5.51 and a 1-year high of $9.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 2.11. The company has a market capitalization of $481.35 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -10.95 and a beta of 0.98.

SunCoke Energy (NYSE:SXC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 17th. The energy company reported ($1.00) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.10 by ($1.10). SunCoke Energy had a positive return on equity of 7.43% and a negative net margin of 2.41%.The company had revenue of $480.20 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $437.45 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.28 earnings per share. SunCoke Energy’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that SunCoke Energy, Inc. will post 0.71 EPS for the current year.

SunCoke Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 2nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 17th will be paid a $0.12 dividend. This represents a $0.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 8.4%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 17th. SunCoke Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently -92.31%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have issued reports on SXC. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of SunCoke Energy in a report on Monday, December 22nd. B. Riley Financial reduced their price target on SunCoke Energy from $10.00 to $9.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $9.00.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On SunCoke Energy

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in SunCoke Energy by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 7,024,864 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $50,579,000 after acquiring an additional 33,535 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its stake in shares of SunCoke Energy by 7.2% in the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 3,868,796 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $31,569,000 after purchasing an additional 259,727 shares during the last quarter. LSV Asset Management boosted its stake in shares of SunCoke Energy by 14.5% in the 2nd quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 3,427,707 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $29,444,000 after purchasing an additional 433,395 shares during the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC increased its position in shares of SunCoke Energy by 10.9% during the fourth quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 2,663,161 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $19,175,000 after buying an additional 261,400 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in SunCoke Energy by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,238,567 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $16,120,000 after buying an additional 19,084 shares during the last quarter. 90.45% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About SunCoke Energy

SunCoke Energy, Inc is a leading independent producer of metallurgical coke and related products for the steel and foundry industries. The company specializes in manufacturing both blast furnace coke and foundry coke, offering high‐quality, low‐sulfur coal products that serve as essential inputs in steelmaking and metal casting processes. In addition to coke production, SunCoke provides comprehensive engineering, maintenance and environmental solutions tailored to the needs of integrated steel mills and foundries.

The company operates a network of coke production facilities across the United States, including plants in Indiana, Ohio, West Virginia and Louisiana.