Phibro Animal Health (NASDAQ:PAHC) Shares Gap Up Following Strong Earnings

Phibro Animal Health Co. (NASDAQ:PAHC)’s share price gapped up prior to trading on Thursday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The stock had previously closed at $22.37, but opened at $23.88. Phibro Animal Health shares last traded at $23.97, with a volume of 29,625 shares traded.

The company reported $0.54 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.40 by $0.14. Phibro Animal Health had a return on equity of 21.59% and a net margin of 1.67%.

Phibro Animal Health Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 26th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th will be given a $0.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 5th. This represents a $0.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.95%. Phibro Animal Health’s dividend payout ratio is currently 100.00%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PAHC has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Phibro Animal Health from $20.00 to $25.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Barclays upped their target price on Phibro Animal Health from $13.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Phibro Animal Health from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $20.50.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of PAHC. Hussman Strategic Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Phibro Animal Health during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $2,205,000. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Phibro Animal Health by 116.6% in the 3rd quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 192,255 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,330,000 after purchasing an additional 103,491 shares during the last quarter. Algert Global LLC increased its position in shares of Phibro Animal Health by 521.1% during the third quarter. Algert Global LLC now owns 71,335 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,606,000 after buying an additional 59,850 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Phibro Animal Health during the fourth quarter worth $1,103,000. Finally, Wakefield Asset Management LLLP bought a new position in Phibro Animal Health during the fourth quarter worth $1,020,000. 99.34% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Phibro Animal Health Trading Up 9.9 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.81, a current ratio of 3.23 and a quick ratio of 1.69. The firm has a market cap of $995.56 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 57.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.56 and a beta of 0.52. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $21.87 and its 200-day moving average is $21.60.

About Phibro Animal Health

Phibro Animal Health Corporation operates as an animal health and mineral nutrition company in the United States, Israel, Brazil, Ireland, and internationally. It operates through three segments: Animal Health, Mineral Nutrition, and Performance Products. The company develops, manufactures, and markets various products for food and companion animals including poultry, swine, beef and dairy cattle, aquaculture, and dogs.