Short Interest in ICL Group Ltd (NYSE:ICL) Grows By 61.9%

ICL Group Ltd (NYSE:ICL) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest in February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 3,060,000 shares, an increase of 61.9% from the February 13th total of 1,890,000 shares. Approximately 0.4% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 933,800 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.3 days.

ICL Group Price Performance

NYSE:ICL opened at $6.31 on Monday. ICL Group has a 12 month low of $3.79 and a 12 month high of $6.57. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $5.90 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $4.94. The firm has a market cap of $8.29 billion, a PE ratio of 20.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 7.10 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30.

ICL Group (NYSE:ICL) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The basic materials company reported $0.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.08. ICL Group had a net margin of 5.83% and a return on equity of 8.31%. The company had revenue of $1.60 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.65 billion. On average, equities analysts anticipate that ICL Group will post 0.37 EPS for the current fiscal year.

ICL Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 25th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 12th will be given a dividend of $0.0403 per share. This represents a $0.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.55%. This is a positive change from ICL Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.01. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 12th. ICL Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 50.00%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On ICL Group

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Lindbrook Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of ICL Group by 56.8% during the fourth quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 5,273 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 1,910 shares during the last quarter. Claro Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of ICL Group by 18.4% during the fourth quarter. Claro Advisors LLC now owns 18,458 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $91,000 after buying an additional 2,872 shares during the last quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of ICL Group by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 131,878 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $651,000 after buying an additional 2,876 shares during the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP raised its stake in shares of ICL Group by 35.6% during the third quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 11,380 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $48,000 after buying an additional 2,985 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Glenmede Trust Co. NA raised its stake in shares of ICL Group by 40.5% during the third quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA now owns 14,368 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $61,000 after buying an additional 4,140 shares during the last quarter. 13.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ICL has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on shares of ICL Group from $6.00 to $6.50 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of ICL Group from $6.00 to $7.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of ICL Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 27th.

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.