U.S. Silica (NYSE:SLCA) Stock Price Down 3.2%

U.S. Silica Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SLCA – Get Rating)’s share price traded down 3.2% during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $11.98 and last traded at $12.08. 289,326 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 61% from the average session volume of 749,024 shares. The stock had previously closed at $12.48.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on SLCA. Barclays lifted their target price on U.S. Silica from $17.00 to $18.00 in a research report on Tuesday, May 9th. Citigroup increased their target price on U.S. Silica from $13.50 to $15.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, March 6th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of U.S. Silica from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 12th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, U.S. Silica has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $17.00.

U.S. Silica Trading Down 0.9 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a quick ratio of 1.69 and a current ratio of 2.36. The company’s 50 day moving average is $12.23 and its 200 day moving average is $12.29. The stock has a market capitalization of $953.23 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.25 and a beta of 2.60.

U.S. Silica (NYSE:SLCA – Get Rating) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 27th. The mining company reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.46 by $0.18. U.S. Silica had a net margin of 7.89% and a return on equity of 20.80%. The business had revenue of $442.20 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $424.60 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned ($0.02) earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 45.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that U.S. Silica Holdings, Inc. will post 1.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Bryan Adair Shinn sold 58,499 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.99, for a total value of $818,401.01. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,460,684 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,434,969.16. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 3.70% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On U.S. Silica

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Boston Partners bought a new position in U.S. Silica in the 1st quarter valued at $18,701,000. Millennium Management LLC boosted its position in shares of U.S. Silica by 214.1% during the second quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,109,860 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $12,675,000 after purchasing an additional 756,500 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in U.S. Silica by 70.4% in the 1st quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 1,682,923 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $20,094,000 after purchasing an additional 695,250 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in U.S. Silica by 2,504.6% in the 1st quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 695,100 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $8,299,000 after acquiring an additional 668,413 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Great Lakes Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in U.S. Silica in the 3rd quarter valued at $6,396,000. 82.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

U.S. Silica Company Profile

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U.S. Silica Holdings, Inc engages in the provision of commercial silica products. It operates through the following segments: Oil and Gas Proppants, and Industrial and Specialty Products. The Oil and Gas Proppants segment focuses on delivering fracturing sand, which is pumped down oil and natural gas wells to prop open rock fissures and increase the flow rate of natural gas and oil from the wells.