Braskem S.A. (NYSE:BAK) Short Interest Up 25.2% in December

Braskem S.A. (NYSE:BAK) saw a significant growth in short interest in the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,990,000 shares, a growth of 25.2% from the November 30th total of 1,590,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 814,800 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.4 days.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Braskem

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. American Century Companies Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Braskem by 1.6% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 111,968 shares of the company’s stock valued at $722,000 after acquiring an additional 1,807 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP grew its stake in Braskem by 872.0% in the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 268,352 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,731,000 after purchasing an additional 240,744 shares in the last quarter. MBB Public Markets I LLC increased its position in Braskem by 69.5% in the 2nd 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 during the last quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. raised its stake in shares of Braskem by 60.9% during the 2nd 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. Finally, MQS Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Braskem during the 3rd quarter worth about $77,000.

Braskem Price Performance

NYSE:BAK opened at $3.80 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 23.25. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $5.16 and its 200 day moving average price is $6.11. Braskem has a 52-week low of $3.70 and a 52-week high of $10.98. The firm has a market cap of $1.51 billion, a P/E ratio of -1.07 and a beta of 1.98.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BAK has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group upgraded shares of Braskem from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $7.70 to $10.00 in a research report on Wednesday, September 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on Braskem from $10.00 to $9.50 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, September 10th.

About Braskem

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.