Short Interest in Sasol Ltd. (NYSE:SSL) Expands By 21.2%

Sasol Ltd. (NYSE:SSL) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totaling 4,187,386 shares, an increase of 21.2% from the December 31st total of 3,455,336 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 1,140,173 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.7 days. Currently, 0.7% of the company’s shares are short sold. Currently, 0.7% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 1,140,173 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.7 days.

Institutional Trading of Sasol

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in SSL. Advisors Preferred LLC purchased a new position in Sasol during the 4th quarter worth approximately $117,000. Pekin Hardy Strauss Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Sasol in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $189,000. UBS Group AG grew its position in shares of Sasol by 52.0% during the fourth quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 835,052 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $5,436,000 after acquiring an additional 285,807 shares during the last quarter. PDS Planning Inc increased its holdings in shares of Sasol by 15.3% in the 4th quarter. PDS Planning Inc now owns 14,269 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $93,000 after acquiring an additional 1,893 shares during the period. Finally, Ritholtz Wealth Management purchased a new stake in Sasol in the 4th quarter valued at $150,000. 1.21% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Sasol Trading Up 1.2%

Shares of Sasol stock traded up $0.09 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $7.28. The company had a trading volume of 2,126,320 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,683,136. The company has a current ratio of 1.87, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The company’s 50-day moving average is $6.59 and its two-hundred day moving average is $6.32. Sasol has a twelve month low of $2.78 and a twelve month high of $7.66.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SSL has been the topic of a number of research reports. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Sasol from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated an “underweight” rating on shares of Sasol in a report on Friday, January 16th. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Sasol in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded Sasol from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Sasol has a consensus rating of “Reduce”.

About Sasol

Sasol Limited is an integrated energy and chemical company headquartered in Johannesburg, South Africa. The company’s core operations encompass the conversion of natural gas, coal and heavy hydrocarbons into liquid fuels and a wide array of chemical products. Sasol leverages proprietary Fischer-Tropsch and gas-to-liquids (GTL) technologies to deliver cleaner-burning diesel, jet fuel and naphtha, alongside solvents, surfactants and specialty polymers for industrial and consumer applications.

In addition to its GTL business, Sasol operates downstream facilities for the manufacture of alpha olefins, ethylene, propylene and other base-chemical intermediates.