American Vanguard Co. (NYSE:AVD) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

American Vanguard Co. (NYSE:AVD) saw a significant increase in short interest in December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 935,600 shares, an increase of 10.3% from the December 15th total of 848,300 shares. Approximately 3.5% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 321,300 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.9 days.

Insider Transactions at American Vanguard

In other American Vanguard news, Director Steven D. Macicek purchased 12,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 15th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $5.97 per share, for a total transaction of $71,640.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 31,218 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $186,371.46. The trade was a 62.44 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 10.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On American Vanguard

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its stake in shares of American Vanguard by 5.2% during the 3rd quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 64,915 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $344,000 after buying an additional 3,216 shares during the last quarter. Point72 DIFC Ltd raised its holdings in American Vanguard by 195.7% during the second quarter. Point72 DIFC Ltd now owns 5,080 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $44,000 after acquiring an additional 3,362 shares in the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP boosted its position in American Vanguard by 64.5% during the third quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 11,291 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $60,000 after purchasing an additional 4,429 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. grew its stake in American Vanguard by 12.9% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 45,206 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $389,000 after purchasing an additional 5,170 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Vanguard during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $56,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.04% of the company’s stock.

American Vanguard Stock Up 1.1 %

AVD stock traded up $0.06 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $5.08. 344,848 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 304,015. The company has a market cap of $146.17 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -4.93 and a beta of 0.91. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $5.28 and its 200-day moving average is $6.06. American Vanguard has a 12 month low of $4.26 and a 12 month high of $14.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 1.89 and a quick ratio of 0.79.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded shares of American Vanguard from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $16.67.

American Vanguard Company Profile

American Vanguard Corporation, through its subsidiaries, develops, manufactures, and markets specialty chemicals for agricultural, commercial, and consumer uses in the United States and internationally. It manufactures and formulates chemicals, including insecticides, fungicides, herbicides, soil health, plant nutrition, molluscicides, growth regulators, soil fumigants, and biorationals in liquid, powder, and granular forms for crops, turf and ornamental plants, and human and animal health protection.