Valhi (NYSE:VHI) Shares Gap Up to $27.12

Shares of Valhi, Inc. (NYSE:VHI) gapped up prior to trading on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $27.12, but opened at $28.35. Valhi shares last traded at $28.35, with a volume of 8,727 shares.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded Valhi from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 12th.

Valhi Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 3.49 and a quick ratio of 2.24. The firm has a market capitalization of $820.13 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 1,449.00 and a beta of 1.28. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $23.48 and its 200 day simple moving average is $19.13.

Valhi (NYSE:VHI) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 8th. The basic materials company reported $0.70 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.29 by $0.41. Valhi had a return on equity of 2.02% and a net margin of 1.27%. The company had revenue of $559.70 million during the quarter.

Valhi Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 26th. Investors of record on Friday, September 6th will be issued a $0.08 dividend. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.10%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 6th. Valhi’s dividend payout ratio is currently 1,600.00%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

An institutional investor recently raised its position in Valhi stock. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its position in Valhi, Inc. (NYSE:VHI) by 8.1% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 117,129 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 8,750 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC owned about 0.41% of Valhi worth $2,012,000 as of its most recent SEC filing. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 3.83% of the company’s stock.

Valhi Company Profile

Valhi, Inc engages in the chemicals, component products, and real estate management and development businesses in Europe, North America, the Asia Pacific, and internationally. The company's Chemicals segment produces and markets titanium dioxide pigments (TiO2), which are white inorganic pigments used in various applications by paint, plastics, decorative laminate, and paper manufacturers.