Arizona State Retirement System Sells 168 Shares of Minerals Technologies Inc. (NYSE:MTX)

Arizona State Retirement System reduced its position in shares of Minerals Technologies Inc. (NYSE:MTX) by 1.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 9,098 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 168 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System’s holdings in Minerals Technologies were worth $649,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its position in Minerals Technologies by 1.4% in the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 12,898 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $744,000 after acquiring an additional 174 shares during the period. Inspire Investing LLC raised its position in Minerals Technologies by 3.2% during the 3rd quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 6,395 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $350,000 after purchasing an additional 197 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can lifted its holdings in Minerals Technologies by 3.3% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 6,827 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $423,000 after buying an additional 219 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Minerals Technologies by 4.6% in the 2nd quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 5,582 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $322,000 after buying an additional 246 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Yousif Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Minerals Technologies by 1.7% in the first quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC now owns 17,936 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,186,000 after buying an additional 295 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 97.29% of the company’s stock.

Minerals Technologies Stock Performance

NYSE:MTX opened at $70.94 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.69, a current ratio of 2.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. Minerals Technologies Inc. has a twelve month low of $48.61 and a twelve month high of $76.80. The company has a fifty day moving average of $72.70 and a 200-day moving average of $65.64. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.39 and a beta of 1.33.

Minerals Technologies (NYSE:MTX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 2nd. The basic materials company reported $1.28 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.25 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $524.50 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $506.67 million. Minerals Technologies had a net margin of 3.88% and a return on equity of 10.26%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.67 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Minerals Technologies Inc. will post 5.9 EPS for the current year.

Minerals Technologies Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 7th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 15th were paid a $0.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 14th. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.56%. Minerals Technologies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 15.44%.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Jonathan J. Hastings sold 12,922 shares of Minerals Technologies stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.48, for a total value of $923,664.56. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 53,862 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,850,055.76. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, insider Dj Monagle III sold 1,180 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.12, for a total value of $87,461.60. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 81,031 shares in the company, valued at $6,006,017.72. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Jonathan J. Hastings sold 12,922 shares of Minerals Technologies stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.48, for a total value of $923,664.56. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 53,862 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,850,055.76. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 3.50% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently commented on MTX. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded Minerals Technologies from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 5th. TheStreet raised shares of Minerals Technologies from a “c+” rating to a “b” rating in a research note on Friday, February 2nd. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Minerals Technologies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 8th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $68.50.

Minerals Technologies Profile

Minerals Technologies Inc develops, produces, and markets various mineral, mineral-based, and related systems and services. The company operates through two segments, Consumer & Specialties, and Engineered Solutions segments. The Consumer & Specialties segment offers household and personal care products, such as pet litter, personal care, fabric care, edible oil and other fluid purification, animal health, and agricultural products; and specialty additives products, including precipitated calcium carbonate and ground calcium carbonate products that are used in the paper, paperboard, and fiber based packaging industries, as well as automotive, construction, and table and food applications.