Cove Street Capital LLC Decreases Stock Position in Axalta Coating Systems Ltd. (NYSE:AXTA)

Cove Street Capital LLC cut its stake in Axalta Coating Systems Ltd. (NYSE:AXTA – Get Rating) by 2.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 171,208 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 4,819 shares during the quarter. Cove Street Capital LLC owned about 0.08% of Axalta Coating Systems worth $4,361,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AXTA. Amalgamated Bank increased its holdings in Axalta Coating Systems by 70.3% during the 4th quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 72,728 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $1,852,000 after purchasing an additional 30,024 shares during the period. Sei Investments Co. grew its position in Axalta Coating Systems by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 731,556 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $18,633,000 after buying an additional 7,974 shares during the period. SYSTM Wealth Solutions LLC purchased a new position in Axalta Coating Systems during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $474,000. Assetmark Inc. lifted its holdings in Axalta Coating Systems by 38.8% during the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 126,665 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $3,226,000 after purchasing an additional 35,416 shares in the last quarter. Finally, HRT Financial LP purchased a new position in Axalta Coating Systems during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $530,000.

Insider Activity at Axalta Coating Systems

In other Axalta Coating Systems news, CEO Chris Villavarayan acquired 34,440 shares of Axalta Coating Systems stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 13th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $29.20 per share, for a total transaction of $1,005,648.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 34,440 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,005,648. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, CEO Chris Villavarayan acquired 34,440 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 13th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $29.20 per share, for a total transaction of $1,005,648.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 34,440 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,005,648. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director William M. Cook purchased 2,500 shares of Axalta Coating Systems stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 14th. The shares were bought at an average price of $29.55 per share, for a total transaction of $73,875.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 4,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $132,975. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Axalta Coating Systems Trading Up 0.7 %

AXTA stock traded up $0.21 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $29.85. 728,607 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,680,123. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $30.22 and its 200-day moving average price is $28.45. Axalta Coating Systems Ltd. has a one year low of $20.66 and a one year high of $32.56. The company has a market cap of $6.61 billion, a PE ratio of 31.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.23, a quick ratio of 1.43 and a current ratio of 2.05.

Axalta Coating Systems (NYSE:AXTA – Get Rating) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 2nd. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.31 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $1.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.24 billion. Axalta Coating Systems had a return on equity of 23.36% and a net margin of 4.22%. The business’s revenue was up 9.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.31 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Axalta Coating Systems Ltd. will post 1.53 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AXTA has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Credit Suisse Group boosted their price objective on shares of Axalta Coating Systems from $20.00 to $24.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 26th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of Axalta Coating Systems from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, January 30th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Axalta Coating Systems from $29.00 to $32.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 17th. Mizuho increased their price objective on shares of Axalta Coating Systems from $31.00 to $34.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 19th. Finally, StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Axalta Coating Systems in a report on Thursday, May 18th. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $31.95.

Axalta Coating Systems Profile

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Axalta Coating Systems Ltd. engages in the manufacture, marketing and distribution of coatings systems. It operates through the Performance Coatings and Mobility Coatings business segments. The Performance Coatings segment provides liquid and powder coatings solutions to a fragmented and local customer base.