U.S. Silica (NYSE:SLCA) has been assigned a $43.00 target price by equities researchers at Jefferies Group in a research note issued on Monday, November 13th. The firm presently has a “buy” rating on the mining company’s stock. Jefferies Group’s price target would indicate a potential upside of 32.06% from the stock’s current price. Jefferies Group also issued estimates for U.S. Silica’s Q2 2018 earnings at $0.89 EPS, Q3 2018 earnings at $1.16 EPS and Q4 2018 earnings at $1.02 EPS.
Several other equities research analysts have also commented on the stock. Zacks Investment Research lowered shares of U.S. Silica from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, July 17th. Piper Jaffray Companies restated a “buy” rating and issued a $36.00 price target on shares of U.S. Silica in a research note on Thursday, October 19th. Credit Suisse Group restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $42.00 price target (down previously from $65.00) on shares of U.S. Silica in a research note on Thursday, July 20th. BidaskClub upgraded shares of U.S. Silica from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, September 2nd. Finally, ValuEngine lowered shares of U.S. Silica from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, September 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and nineteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. U.S. Silica currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $48.35.
Shares of U.S. Silica (NYSE SLCA) traded up $0.46 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $32.56. 1,517,700 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,181,743. U.S. Silica has a 1 year low of $24.26 and a 1 year high of $61.49. The company has a market capitalization of $2,644.78, a PE ratio of 40.70 and a beta of 2.32. The company has a quick ratio of 3.26, a current ratio of 3.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39.
U.S. Silica announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Monday, November 6th that allows the company to buyback $100.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization allows the mining company to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.
In other news, Director Charles W. Shaver acquired 3,300 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 12th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $33.99 per share, with a total value of $112,167.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 29,829 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,013,887.71. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Bradford B. Casper sold 8,700 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.21, for a total transaction of $297,627.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 18,593 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $636,066.53. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have purchased 7,900 shares of company stock valued at $256,063 over the last 90 days. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.
A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of SLCA. Van Berkom & Associates Inc. boosted its stake in shares of U.S. Silica by 111.1% during the 2nd quarter. Van Berkom & Associates Inc. now owns 1,777,081 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $63,069,000 after buying an additional 935,430 shares during the period. State Street Corp raised its holdings in shares of U.S. Silica by 35.4% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,663,238 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $94,554,000 after purchasing an additional 696,893 shares in the last quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. bought a new position in U.S. Silica in the 2nd quarter worth $22,977,000. SG Capital Management LLC bought a new position in U.S. Silica in the 3rd quarter worth $19,881,000. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in U.S. Silica by 178.7% in the 2nd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 960,863 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $34,101,000 after acquiring an additional 616,051 shares during the period.
TRADEMARK VIOLATION NOTICE: This story was first posted by American Banking and Market News and is the property of of American Banking and Market News. If you are reading this story on another website, it was illegally stolen and republished in violation of U.S. and international copyright & trademark legislation. The original version of this story can be viewed at https://www.americanbankingnews.com/2017/12/31/u-s-silica-slca-given-a-43-00-price-target-by-jefferies-group-analysts.html.
U.S. Silica Company Profile
U.S. Silica Holdings, Inc is a domestic producer of commercial silica, a specialized mineral that is an input into a range of end markets. The Company operates in two segments: Oil & Gas Proppants, and Industrial & Specialty Products. In the Oil & Gas Proppants segment, it serves the oil and gas recovery market providing fracturing sand, or frac sand, which is pumped down oil and natural gas wells to prop open rock fissures and manage the flow rate of natural gas and oil from the wells.
