Valhi (NYSE:VHI) Stock Price Passes Below Two Hundred Day Moving Average – Should You Sell?

Shares of Valhi, Inc. (NYSE:VHI) crossed below its 200-day moving average during trading on Friday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $14.92 and traded as low as $13.92. Valhi shares last traded at $14.0550, with a volume of 13,136 shares trading hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on VHI. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Valhi in a report on Monday, December 29th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Valhi to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Sell rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Sell” and an average price target of $12.00.

Valhi Trading Down 2.0%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 3.64 and a quick ratio of 1.76. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $12.66 and its 200-day moving average is $14.90. The company has a market capitalization of $397.78 million, a P/E ratio of 21.96 and a beta of 1.18.

Valhi (NYSE:VHI) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The basic materials company reported ($0.33) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.83 by ($1.16). The firm had revenue of $503.50 million for the quarter. Valhi had a return on equity of 2.22% and a net margin of 0.89%.

Valhi Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 18th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 21st were given a dividend of $0.08 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 21st. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. Valhi’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 50.00%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of VHI. Strs Ohio bought a new position in shares of Valhi during the first quarter valued at approximately $289,000. Mission Wealth Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Valhi in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $228,000. Rhumbline Advisers grew its stake in shares of Valhi by 79.9% in the 3rd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 7,520 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $119,000 after buying an additional 3,341 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its position in Valhi by 133.9% during the 2nd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 4,867 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $79,000 after buying an additional 2,786 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC raised its stake in Valhi by 1.9% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 144,202 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,343,000 after buying an additional 2,753 shares during the last quarter. 3.83% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Valhi Company Profile

Valhi, Inc is a diversified holding company incorporated in Delaware in 1987 and headquartered in Dallas, Texas. Through its three wholly owned subsidiaries—Kronos Worldwide, CompX International and NL Industries—Valhi participates in the manufacture and distribution of chemical and security products for industrial, commercial and consumer markets.

Kronos Worldwide is a leading independent producer of titanium dioxide pigment, a white powder that enhances brightness and opacity in paints, coatings, plastics, paper and other applications.