Ascent Industries Co. (NASDAQ:ACNT) Short Interest Update

Ascent Industries Co. (NASDAQ:ACNT) saw a large growth in short interest in December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totaling 280,620 shares, a growth of 27.2% from the November 30th total of 220,636 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 77,648 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.6 days. Approximately 3.3% of the company’s stock are sold short. Approximately 3.3% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 77,648 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.6 days.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ascent Industries

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its holdings in shares of Ascent Industries by 114.3% during the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 1,937 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 1,033 shares during the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Ascent Industries in the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey acquired a new stake in shares of Ascent Industries in the 2nd quarter valued at about $29,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. purchased a new position in Ascent Industries during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $38,000. Finally, MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. purchased a new position in Ascent Industries during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $55,000. 26.05% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Ascent Industries in a report on Monday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Sell rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ascent Industries presently has an average rating of “Sell”.

Ascent Industries Price Performance

ACNT stock opened at $16.19 on Thursday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $14.30 and a 200 day moving average price of $13.14. The company has a quick ratio of 5.86, a current ratio of 6.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The stock has a market cap of $151.54 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 134.93 and a beta of 0.50. Ascent Industries has a fifty-two week low of $10.76 and a fifty-two week high of $16.84.

Ascent Industries (NASDAQ:ACNT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 4th. The company reported $0.01 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.29 by ($0.28). The company had revenue of $19.70 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $59.40 million. Ascent Industries had a negative return on equity of 1.63% and a net margin of 0.85%.

Ascent Industries declared that its board has approved a share buyback plan on Thursday, December 18th that authorizes the company to repurchase $2.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 1.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

About Ascent Industries

Ascent Industries Co an industrials company, produces and distributes stainless steel pipe and tube and specialty chemicals in the United States and internationally. The company operates through two segments, Tubular Products and Specialty Chemicals. It manufactures welded pipes and tubes, primarily from stainless steel, duplex, and nickel alloys; and ornamental stainless steel tubes for automotive, commercial transportation, marine, food services, construction, furniture, healthcare, and other industries.