NPK International Inc. $NPKI Shares Bought by Wasatch Advisors LP

Wasatch Advisors LP grew its holdings in NPK International Inc. (NYSE:NPKI) by 30.8% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 2,899,021 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 683,116 shares during the period. Wasatch Advisors LP’s holdings in NPK International were worth $42,007,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in NPKI. GSA Capital Partners LLP purchased a new position in NPK International during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,369,000. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL boosted its stake in NPK International by 985.9% during the third quarter. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL now owns 506,585 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,729,000 after buying an additional 459,935 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in NPK International by 200.5% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 223,464 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,527,000 after buying an additional 149,088 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. grew its holdings in NPK International by 13.1% in the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,971,066 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,603,000 after buying an additional 344,658 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Granahan Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of NPK International by 16.1% in the 4th quarter. Granahan Investment Management LLC now owns 580,447 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,919,000 after acquiring an additional 80,507 shares during the last quarter. 80.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently commented on NPKI shares. Weiss Ratings upgraded NPK International from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Monday, June 15th. B. Riley Financial reissued a “buy” rating on shares of NPK International in a report on Monday, May 4th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, NPK International currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $14.17.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Matthew Lanigan sold 167,375 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $14.43, for a total value of $2,415,221.25. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 254,699 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,675,306.57. The trade was a 39.66% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Michael A. Lewis sold 2,013 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $15.30, for a total transaction of $30,798.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 129,320 shares in the company, valued at $1,978,596. The trade was a 1.53% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 238,159 shares of company stock worth $3,454,567. Company insiders own 4.20% of the company’s stock.

NPK International Trading Up 0.5%

NPKI opened at $15.60 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.32 billion, a PE ratio of 33.91 and a beta of 1.24. NPK International Inc. has a one year low of $8.17 and a one year high of $16.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a quick ratio of 1.40 and a current ratio of 1.58. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $15.14 and its 200 day moving average price is $14.19.

NPK International (NYSE:NPKI) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported $0.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.11 by $0.01. NPK International had a return on equity of 10.56% and a net margin of 13.71%.The company had revenue of $75.07 million during the quarter. As a group, equities research analysts expect that NPK International Inc. will post 0.54 EPS for the current year.

About NPK International

NPK International, Inc (NYSE: NPKI) is a specialty chemical distributor supplying a broad range of industrial and performance materials across diverse end-markets. Its product portfolio includes acetic acid and derivatives, alcohols, ketones, esters, glycol ethers, glycols, specialty solvents, select inorganic chemicals and crop-protection intermediates. These materials serve industries such as coatings, adhesives and sealants, oil and gas, personal care, pharmaceuticals, agrochemicals and water treatment.

The company places a strong emphasis on supply-chain security and technical service, maintaining warehousing, logistics support and laboratory capabilities at its regional distribution centers.