Macquarie Downgrades Piedmont Lithium (NASDAQ:PLL) to Underperform

Piedmont Lithium (NASDAQ:PLL) was downgraded by Macquarie from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating in a note issued to investors on Wednesday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. They currently have a $7.80 price objective on the mineral exploration company’s stock. Macquarie’s price target would suggest a potential downside of 32.47% from the stock’s current price.

Several other equities research analysts have also commented on PLL. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price target on shares of Piedmont Lithium from $15.00 to $8.50 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, September 6th. B. Riley lowered their target price on Piedmont Lithium from $26.00 to $20.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 12th. Finally, Roth Mkm reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $40.00 price target (down from $61.00) on shares of Piedmont Lithium in a research report on Friday, August 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Piedmont Lithium currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $24.47.

Piedmont Lithium Stock Down 5.7 %

Shares of PLL stock opened at $11.55 on Wednesday. Piedmont Lithium has a fifty-two week low of $6.57 and a fifty-two week high of $35.65. The firm has a market capitalization of $223.71 million, a PE ratio of -6.08 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 2.32 and a current ratio of 2.32. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $9.09 and its 200-day simple moving average is $11.02.

Piedmont Lithium (NASDAQ:PLL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 8th. The mineral exploration company reported ($0.69) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.16) by ($0.53). The company had revenue of $13.23 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.89 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted ($0.55) EPS. Equities analysts expect that Piedmont Lithium will post -2.26 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Piedmont Lithium

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Piedmont Lithium during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $1,484,000. Raymond James & Associates purchased a new position in Piedmont Lithium during the second quarter valued at $1,472,000. Boston Partners grew its position in shares of Piedmont Lithium by 154.5% in the first quarter. Boston Partners now owns 170,097 shares of the mineral exploration company’s stock valued at $2,266,000 after purchasing an additional 103,273 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Piedmont Lithium during the second quarter worth about $874,000. Finally, Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC acquired a new position in shares of Piedmont Lithium during the 2nd quarter worth about $723,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 52.23% of the company’s stock.

Piedmont Lithium Company Profile

Piedmont Lithium Inc, a development stage company, engages in the exploration and development of resource projects in the United States. The company primarily holds a 100% interest in the Carolina Lithium Project that include an area of approximately 3,706 acres located within the Carolina Tin-Spodumene Belt situated to the northwest of Charlotte, North Carolina in the United States.