SunCoke Energy (NYSE:SXC) Downgraded by StockNews.com to Buy

StockNews.com downgraded shares of SunCoke Energy (NYSE:SXC) from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a research note released on Friday morning.

Separately, Benchmark restated a buy rating and set a $12.00 price target on shares of SunCoke Energy in a research report on Thursday.

SunCoke Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE SXC traded up $0.18 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $10.31. 672,411 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 639,475. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $10.81 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $10.30. The company has a market capitalization of $866.81 million, a P/E ratio of 14.49 and a beta of 1.19. SunCoke Energy has a 52-week low of $6.71 and a 52-week high of $11.48. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 2.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75.

SunCoke Energy (NYSE:SXC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The energy company reported $0.23 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.22 by $0.01. SunCoke Energy had a net margin of 2.97% and a return on equity of 9.48%. The firm had revenue of $488.40 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $549.40 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.19 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up .1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that SunCoke Energy will post 0.86 EPS for the current year.

SunCoke Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 3rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 14th. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.88%. SunCoke Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 56.34%.

Insider Buying and Selling at SunCoke Energy

In other SunCoke Energy news, CEO Michael G. Rippey sold 122,533 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $11.11, for a total transaction of $1,361,341.63. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 521,073 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,789,121.03. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, CEO Michael G. Rippey sold 122,533 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $11.11, for a total value of $1,361,341.63. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 521,073 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,789,121.03. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Michael G. Rippey sold 78,714 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $11.06, for a total transaction of $870,576.84. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 342,359 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,786,490.54. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 251,572 shares of company stock valued at $2,781,834 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 1.73% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On SunCoke Energy

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Jennison Associates LLC increased its stake in shares of SunCoke Energy by 4.3% in the 4th quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 96,551 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $1,037,000 after acquiring an additional 3,954 shares in the last quarter. Swiss National Bank lifted its holdings in shares of SunCoke Energy by 0.9% during the third quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 184,050 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $1,868,000 after purchasing an additional 1,700 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of SunCoke Energy by 5.0% in the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 638,418 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $6,480,000 after purchasing an additional 30,213 shares in the last quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of SunCoke Energy by 67.5% in the 3rd quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 199,360 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $2,024,000 after buying an additional 80,358 shares during the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. raised its stake in SunCoke Energy by 9.1% during the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,532,018 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $15,550,000 after buying an additional 127,997 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.45% of the company’s stock.

About SunCoke Energy

SunCoke Energy, Inc operates as an independent producer of coke in the Americas and Brazil. The company operates through three segments: Domestic Coke, Brazil Coke, and Logistics. It offers metallurgical and thermal coal. The company also provides handling and/or mixing services to steel, coke, electric utility, coal producing, and other manufacturing based customers.