Insider Selling: NPK International (NYSE:NPKI) Director Sells $28,705.38 in Stock

NPK International Inc. (NYSE:NPKI) Director Michael Lewis sold 2,013 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $14.26, for a total transaction of $28,705.38. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 135,865 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,937,434.90. This represents a 1.46% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

NPK International Stock Up 0.2%

Shares of NPKI stock traded up $0.03 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $14.04. 771,745 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 846,395. The company has a quick ratio of 1.40, a current ratio of 1.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $14.34 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $14.51. NPK International Inc. has a 12-month low of $9.65 and a 12-month high of $16.50. The stock has a market cap of $1.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.07 and a beta of 1.26.

NPK International (NYSE:NPKI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The company reported $0.15 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.13 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $81.58 million for the quarter. NPK International had a return on equity of 11.31% and a net margin of 14.19%. On average, analysts expect that NPK International Inc. will post 0.55 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NPKI has been the subject of several analyst reports. Weiss Ratings downgraded NPK International from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. B. Riley Financial reissued a “buy” rating on shares of NPK International in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, NPK International presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $18.00.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On NPK International

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NPKI. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of NPK International during the second quarter valued at $141,000. Creative Planning bought a new stake in NPK International in the 2nd quarter worth about $270,000. Cetera Investment Advisers purchased a new position in NPK International in the 2nd quarter worth about $191,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. purchased a new position in NPK International in the 2nd quarter worth about $633,000. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc bought a new position in NPK International during the 2nd quarter valued at about $710,000. 80.81% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

NPK International Company Profile

NPK International, Inc (NYSE: NPKI) is a specialty chemical distributor supplying a broad range of industrial and performance materials across diverse end-markets. Its product portfolio includes acetic acid and derivatives, alcohols, ketones, esters, glycol ethers, glycols, specialty solvents, select inorganic chemicals and crop-protection intermediates. These materials serve industries such as coatings, adhesives and sealants, oil and gas, personal care, pharmaceuticals, agrochemicals and water treatment.

The company places a strong emphasis on supply-chain security and technical service, maintaining warehousing, logistics support and laboratory capabilities at its regional distribution centers.