Citi sees Ecovyst, RPM and Linde stock as most crowded longs

Investing.com - Citi's Quant Team identifies Ecovyst (NYSE: ECVT), RPM International (NYSE: RPM), and Linde (NASDAQ: LIN) as the most crowded long positions within its chemicals coverage, according to a positioning analysis released this week. The firm's crowding composite data analyzes five factors including most crowded factor, relative historical valuation, short interest ratio, sentiment, and macro exposure.

Polyethylene producers Dow (NYSE: DOW) and Westlake (NYSE: WLK) moved higher this week on lower short interest and improved sentiment amid rising US-Iran tensions. Dow raised its second-quarter 2026 EBITDA guidance on stable polyethylene demand. Average long crowding for Citi's chemicals coverage fell roughly 3% week-over-week.

PPG Industries (NYSE: PPG), Sherwin-Williams (NYSE: SHW), and Eastman Chemical (NYSE: EMN) are now the most crowded shorts within Citi's coverage. Average short crowding for the firm's coverage rose approximately 5% week-over-week. The most debated names, measured by the sum of long and short composite scores, are Axalta Coating Systems (NYSE: AXTA), Sherwin-Williams, and Linde.

Over the past month, investor positioning on Axalta, Dow, H.B. Fuller (NYSE: FUL), Huntsman (NYSE: HUN), RPM, and Westlake became more bullish with positive long crowding change and negative short crowding change. The majority of Citi's coverage across sub-sectors are in the more bearish camp with negative long crowding change and positive short crowding change.

In Citi's most recent stock screens, RPM and Sherwin-Williams screened as attractive large-cap oversold names while FMC (NYSE: FMC) screened as a less attractive large-cap crowded short. Citi maintains Buy ratings on both Axalta and Sherwin-Williams.

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