Sasol Ltd. (NYSE:SSL) Receives Average Recommendation of “Reduce” from Analysts

Shares of Sasol Ltd. (NYSE:SSL) have earned a consensus recommendation of “Reduce” from the seven research firms that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating on the company.

SSL has been the subject of a number of research reports. Investec began coverage on shares of Sasol in a report on Wednesday, June 17th. They issued a “sell” rating for the company. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Sasol from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Friday, July 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Sasol in a research report on Monday, June 15th. Zacks Research lowered Sasol from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. Finally, UBS Group raised Sasol from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 4th.

Sasol Stock Up 0.7%

NYSE:SSL opened at $10.94 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a current ratio of 1.66. Sasol has a 12 month low of $4.77 and a 12 month high of $14.36. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $11.87 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $10.48.

Insider Buying and Selling at Sasol

In other news, EVP Sarushen Dhanapalan Pillay sold 2,182 shares of Sasol stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.14, for a total value of $28,671.48. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 16,313 shares in the company, valued at $214,352.82. This trade represents a 11.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 1.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sasol

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Millennium Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Sasol by 75.7% during the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,450,355 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $6,135,000 after buying an additional 624,911 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its holdings in shares of Sasol by 123.3% during the second quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,381,209 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $13,563,000 after purchasing an additional 762,796 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in shares of Sasol by 1,627.3% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,025,934 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $6,381,000 after purchasing an additional 966,539 shares during the period. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA acquired a new stake in shares of Sasol in the first quarter valued at approximately $11,284,000. Finally, UBS Group AG raised its position in shares of Sasol by 52.0% in the fourth quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 835,052 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $5,436,000 after buying an additional 285,807 shares in the last quarter. 1.21% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Sasol

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.