Insider Selling: American Vanguard Co. (NYSE:AVD) Insider Sells 5,000 Shares of Stock

American Vanguard Co. (NYSE:AVD) insider Peter Eilers sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.80, for a total transaction of $29,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 42,905 shares in the company, valued at $248,849. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link.

American Vanguard Stock Performance

Shares of American Vanguard stock traded down $0.02 on Friday, reaching $5.74. The stock had a trading volume of 263,760 shares, compared to its average volume of 250,152. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $7.84 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $9.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a current ratio of 2.29. American Vanguard Co. has a fifty-two week low of $4.95 and a fifty-two week high of $14.28. The stock has a market cap of $160.49 million, a P/E ratio of 22.06 and a beta of 0.91.

American Vanguard (NYSE:AVD) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 8th. The basic materials company reported ($0.09) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.01) by ($0.08). American Vanguard had a return on equity of 2.20% and a net margin of 1.22%. The firm had revenue of $128.21 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $134.20 million. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that American Vanguard Co. will post 0.44 EPS for the current year.

American Vanguard Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, June 26th were given a dividend of $0.03 per share. This represents a $0.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.09%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, June 26th. American Vanguard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 46.15%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On American Vanguard

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of AVD. CWM LLC increased its position in American Vanguard by 492.4% during the fourth quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,340 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 1,945 shares during the period. Gladius Capital Management LP bought a new position in American Vanguard during the second quarter worth $32,000. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in American Vanguard by 7,554.5% during the second quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,210 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 4,155 shares during the period. Point72 DIFC Ltd increased its position in American Vanguard by 195.7% during the second quarter. Point72 DIFC Ltd now owns 5,080 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $44,000 after acquiring an additional 3,362 shares during the period. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC bought a new position in American Vanguard during the second quarter worth $118,000. Institutional investors own 79.04% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently commented on AVD shares. Lake Street Capital began coverage on shares of American Vanguard in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $14.00 price objective on the stock. StockNews.com cut shares of American Vanguard from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $16.67.

About American Vanguard

American Vanguard Corporation, through its subsidiaries, develops, manufactures, and markets specialty chemicals for agricultural, commercial, and consumer uses in the United States and internationally. It manufactures and formulates chemicals, including insecticides, fungicides, herbicides, soil health, plant nutrition, molluscicides, growth regulators, soil fumigants, and biorationals in liquid, powder, and granular forms for crops, turf and ornamental plants, and human and animal health protection.