ICL Group (NYSE:ICL) Stock Price Up 2.9% – Time to Buy?

ICL Group Ltd (NYSE:ICL) was up 2.9% on Monday . The stock traded as high as $4.19 and last traded at $4.19. Approximately 294,658 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 62% from the average daily volume of 768,890 shares. The stock had previously closed at $4.07.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have issued reports on ICL. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of ICL Group from $4.50 to $4.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 16th. StockNews.com lowered shares of ICL Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, September 30th.

ICL Group Price Performance

The stock has a fifty day moving average of $4.15 and a two-hundred day moving average of $4.42. The stock has a market cap of $5.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.71 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a quick ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 1.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31.

ICL Group (NYSE:ICL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 14th. The basic materials company reported $0.10 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.09 by $0.01. ICL Group had a net margin of 6.08% and a return on equity of 8.41%. The business had revenue of $1.75 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.73 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.13 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that ICL Group Ltd will post 0.34 earnings per share for the current year.

ICL Group Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 18th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 4th were paid a dividend of $0.037 per share. This represents a $0.15 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.52%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, September 4th. ICL Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 37.84%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On ICL Group

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale grew its holdings in ICL Group by 8.1% in the first quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 34,054 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $180,000 after purchasing an additional 2,542 shares during the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its stake in ICL Group by 8.7% in the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 32,115 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $161,000 after acquiring an additional 2,580 shares during the last quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV increased its holdings in ICL Group by 103.8% during the 1st quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 7,093 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 3,612 shares in the last quarter. Inspire Investing LLC raised its position in ICL Group by 23.6% during the first quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 21,774 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $117,000 after acquiring an additional 4,162 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Optas LLC lifted its holdings in shares of ICL Group by 18.1% in the second quarter. Optas LLC now owns 28,782 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $123,000 after purchasing an additional 4,410 shares in the last quarter. 13.38% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

ICL Group Company Profile

ICL Group Ltd, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a specialty minerals and chemicals company worldwide. It operates in four segments: Industrial Products, Potash, Phosphate Solutions, and Growing Solutions. The Industrial Products segment produces bromine out of a solution that is a by-product of the potash production process, as well as bromine-based compounds; produces various grades of potash, salt, magnesium chloride, and magnesia products; and produces and markets phosphorous-based flame retardants and other phosphorus-based products.