Short Interest in Braskem S.A. (NYSE:BAK) Expands By 12.2%

Braskem S.A. (NYSE:BAK) saw a significant growth in short interest in October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,560,000 shares, a growth of 12.2% from the October 15th total of 1,390,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 643,800 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.4 days.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BAK. Boston Partners acquired a new position in Braskem in the first quarter valued at $627,000. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Braskem by 1.6% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 111,968 shares of the company’s stock worth $722,000 after purchasing an additional 1,807 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP lifted its stake in shares of Braskem by 872.0% during the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 268,352 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,731,000 after purchasing an additional 240,744 shares in the last quarter. MBB Public Markets I LLC lifted its stake in shares of Braskem by 69.5% during the second quarter. MBB Public Markets I LLC now owns 1,597,293 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,303,000 after purchasing an additional 654,806 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Point72 Asset Management L.P. lifted its stake in shares of Braskem by 60.9% during the second quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 41,200 shares of the company’s stock worth $266,000 after purchasing an additional 15,600 shares in the last quarter.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. UBS Group raised Braskem from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $7.70 to $10.00 in a research report on Wednesday, September 18th. Citigroup raised Braskem from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Braskem from $10.00 to $9.50 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th.

Braskem Trading Down 1.7 %

Braskem stock traded down $0.09 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $5.10. The stock had a trading volume of 629,864 shares, compared to its average volume of 806,468. Braskem has a twelve month low of $5.09 and a twelve month high of $10.98. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.30 billion, a PE ratio of -1.44 and a beta of 2.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 23.25, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 1.28. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $6.51 and its 200 day simple moving average is $6.69.

Braskem Company Profile

Braskem SA, together with its subsidiaries, produces and sells thermoplastic resins. The company operates through three segments: Brazil, United States and Europe, and Mexico. The Brazil segment produces and sells olefins, including ethylene, polymer and chemical grade propylene, butadiene, and butene-1; benzene, toluene, and xylenes products; fuels, such as automotive gasoline, liquefied petroleum gas, ethyl tertiary-butyl ether, and methyl tertiary-butyl ether; intermediates, such as cumene; aliphatics, aromatics, and hydrogenated solvents; and specialties comprising isoprene, dicyclopentadiene, piperylene, nonene, tetramer, polyisobutylene, and hydrocarbon resins.