Lazard Asset Management LLC Makes New Investment in Intrepid Potash, Inc $IPI

Lazard Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Intrepid Potash, Inc (NYSE:IPI) during the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm purchased 37,105 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,587,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its position in Intrepid Potash by 5.0% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 6,572 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $193,000 after acquiring an additional 312 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC raised its stake in shares of Intrepid Potash by 7.3% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 60,623 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,782,000 after purchasing an additional 4,137 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its holdings in Intrepid Potash by 123.0% in the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 2,112 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $75,000 after purchasing an additional 1,165 shares during the period. Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new stake in Intrepid Potash in the second quarter worth about $420,000. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership bought a new position in Intrepid Potash in the 2nd quarter valued at about $3,441,000. 56.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Intrepid Potash Price Performance

IPI stock opened at $33.18 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $445.58 million, a PE ratio of 31.30 and a beta of 1.24. Intrepid Potash, Inc has a 12 month low of $22.55 and a 12 month high of $50.34. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $35.06 and a 200 day simple moving average of $36.96.

Intrepid Potash (NYSE:IPI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The basic materials company reported $0.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.48 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $98.69 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $88.30 million. Intrepid Potash had a net margin of 4.68% and a return on equity of 4.53%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Intrepid Potash, Inc will post 1.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Lori A. Lancaster sold 4,800 shares of Intrepid Potash stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.24, for a total value of $217,152.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 10,540 shares in the company, valued at $476,829.60. The trade was a 31.29% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 2.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have commented on IPI shares. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Intrepid Potash from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Intrepid Potash from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Freedom Capital raised Intrepid Potash to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on Intrepid Potash from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $26.00.

About Intrepid Potash

Intrepid Potash, Inc is a leading U.S.-based producer and marketer of potash and related specialty fertilizer products. The company’s primary business centers on potassium chloride, a key nutrient used in agricultural applications to enhance crop yield and quality. In addition to potash, Intrepid Potash produces magnesium chloride and sodium chloride, which serve a variety of markets including de-icing, dust control and industrial chemical production.

Intrepid Potash operates through a combination of solution mining, solar evaporation and conventional underground mining techniques.