Braskem (NYSE:BAK) Reaches New 12-Month Low – Time to Sell?

Braskem S.A. (NYSE:BAK)’s share price reached a new 52-week low on Monday. The stock traded as low as $0.92 and last traded at $1.0950, with a volume of 16,428,477 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $1.70.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. UBS Group downgraded shares of Braskem from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and cut their target price for the stock from $4.00 to $1.50 in a research report on Tuesday, September 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered shares of Braskem from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Braskem to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, October 17th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (e+)” rating on shares of Braskem in a research note on Thursday, October 15th. Finally, HSBC downgraded shares of Braskem from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $6.50 to $1.50 in a research note on Monday, September 28th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and five have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Strong Sell” and an average target price of $2.56.

Braskem Stock Down 35.6%

The company has a market cap of $436.47 million, a P/E ratio of 0.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.10 and a beta of 1.56. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $1.77 and its 200 day moving average price is $3.07.

Braskem (NYSE:BAK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, June 26th. The company reported $1.61 earnings per share for the quarter. The business had revenue of $4.20 billion during the quarter. Braskem had a negative net margin of 7.28% and a negative return on equity of 67.75%. Analysts expect that Braskem S.A. will post 1.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Ramsey Quantitative Systems raised its holdings in Braskem by 24.7% in the 3rd quarter. Ramsey Quantitative Systems now owns 79,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $115,000 after acquiring an additional 15,627 shares during the period. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in Braskem by 393.2% during the third quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 25,105 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 20,015 shares during the period. Engineers Gate Manager LP boosted its holdings in Braskem by 192.8% during the second quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP now owns 68,198 shares of the company’s stock valued at $166,000 after acquiring an additional 44,905 shares during the period. Citadel Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Braskem during the second quarter valued at about $89,000. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE grew its position in shares of Braskem by 178,471.4% in the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 50,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $183,000 after purchasing an additional 49,972 shares during the last quarter.

Braskem Company Profile

Braskem SA is a Brazil-based petrochemical company that produces basic chemicals and thermoplastic resins used in packaging, construction, automotive components, consumer goods, agriculture and other industrial applications. Its product portfolio includes polyethylene, polypropylene and polyvinyl chloride, as well as inputs such as ethylene, propylene and other petrochemical intermediates.

Founded in 2002 through the combination of several Brazilian petrochemical businesses, Braskem developed into one of Latin America’s largest petrochemical producers.