Corton Capital Inc. Buys 4,762 Shares of Kronos Worldwide, Inc. (NYSE:KRO)

Corton Capital Inc. boosted its position in shares of Kronos Worldwide, Inc. (NYSE:KRO) by 16.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 34,164 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after buying an additional 4,762 shares during the quarter. Corton Capital Inc.’s holdings in Kronos Worldwide were worth $333,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in Kronos Worldwide by 3.6% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,165,098 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $30,859,000 after buying an additional 109,674 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Kronos Worldwide by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,217,961 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $21,625,000 after acquiring an additional 13,869 shares during the period. Boston Partners raised its stake in shares of Kronos Worldwide by 80.4% during the fourth quarter. Boston Partners now owns 1,412,106 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $13,765,000 after acquiring an additional 629,387 shares in the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Kronos Worldwide by 4.5% in the fourth quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 734,230 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $7,159,000 after purchasing an additional 31,830 shares during the period. Finally, First Eagle Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Kronos Worldwide by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 489,177 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $4,769,000 after purchasing an additional 10,000 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 15.11% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Kronos Worldwide

In other news, Director Kevin B. Kramer bought 14,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $7.43 per share, with a total value of $104,020.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 21,460 shares in the company, valued at approximately $159,447.80. The trade was a 187.67 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.11% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, StockNews.com raised Kronos Worldwide from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th.

Kronos Worldwide Stock Performance

KRO stock opened at $7.45 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $7.48 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $9.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a current ratio of 2.68. Kronos Worldwide, Inc. has a one year low of $6.19 and a one year high of $14.50. The firm has a market cap of $857.02 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.20 and a beta of 1.22.

Kronos Worldwide (NYSE:KRO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 6th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($0.12) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.19 by ($0.31). Kronos Worldwide had a return on equity of 11.74% and a net margin of 5.05%. The firm had revenue of $423.10 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $494.19 million.

Kronos Worldwide Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 20th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 11th were issued a dividend of $0.05 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 11th. This represents a $0.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.68%. Kronos Worldwide’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 27.03%.

About Kronos Worldwide

Kronos Worldwide, Inc produces and markets titanium dioxide pigments (TiO2) in Europe, North America, the Asia Pacific, and internationally. The company produces TiO2 in two crystalline forms, rutile and anatase to impart whiteness, brightness, opacity, and durability for various products, including paints, coatings, plastics, paper, fibers, and ceramics, as well as for various specialty products, such as inks, foods, and cosmetics.