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TRTootsie Roll Industries, Inc.Sell4.7·$38.17-0.72%
TR · Why this verdict

Why Tootsie Roll Industries (TR) is rated SELL

Updated

Model-generated analysis — not investment advice. Not a registered investment advisor. Past performance does not guarantee future results.

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Methodology · Editorial policy & full disclaimer

VerdictSELL
Overall score4.7/10
ConfidenceMEDIUM
MacroNEUTRAL

Thesis pillars

Volume is accumulating with rising on-balance volume despite the stock trading below its 200-day moving average, and the support and resistance technical score of 8.1 suggests the stock is near a historically meaningful support level that could provide a buying opportunity.

Stable
Momentum breakdown
Expectation
Price rises above the 200-day moving average within 9 months as volume accumulation translates into price recovery.

CounterBelow-200-MA setups with rising on-balance volume can be momentum divergences that resolve lower rather than higher, particularly in low-growth consumer defensive stocks with no catalyst visible on the horizon.

A Piotroski F-Score of 7 out of 9 and strong Bollinger Band support score of 6.7 indicate that Tootsie Roll's financial fundamentals are sound across multiple dimensions and the stock is technically near a support zone that has historically attracted buyers.

Stable
Quality breakdown
Expectation
Piotroski F-Score remains at 7 or above through the next annual reporting cycle.

CounterConsumer defensive confectioners with no recognized competitive moat can see Piotroski scores deteriorate if input cost inflation — cocoa, sugar, packaging — compresses margins faster than pricing can recover.

The two most recent earnings misses and an average negative surprise of -1.4% across the available track record indicate that analyst consensus tends to overshoot Tootsie Roll's actual delivery, creating a pattern of modest but persistent disappointments.

Stable
Earnings
Expectation
Earnings surprises return to positive territory in at least 2 of the next 3 quarters as estimates are reset more conservatively.

CounterThe earnings data in the analysis dates to 2014-2015, making it unclear whether the current miss pattern reflects recent business conditions or simply stale historical data; more recent reporting periods could show different results.

Revenue and earnings growth are modest — in the low single digits — while the stock has no analyst coverage beyond a neutral rating, meaning Tootsie Roll is valued purely on its intrinsic earnings power without a catalyst for multiple expansion.

Stable
Growth breakdown
Expectation
Revenue growth turns positive and exceeds 3% year over year within 12 months, supporting modest upside to the $41.14 resistance target.

CounterA confectioner with no meaningful growth, no moat, and stale analyst coverage may trade at a permanently compressed multiple; the 8.7% upside to resistance is achievable but may take longer than 12 months without a catalyst.

TrendMatrix Research · core thesis

Engine thesis — one sentence

Tootsie Roll Industries is a low-volatility consumer defensive confectioner with a Piotroski F-Score of 7 out of 9 and a strong technical setup at Bollinger Band support, but has a history of earnings misses and its most recent available quarterly data dates to 2014-2015, raising questions about the currency of the earnings track record used in analysis.

Falsifiable statement — pillar-level invalidators below. Engine-derived; not personalized advice.

Per-dimension breakdown

Value

4.0/10data confidence 60%
ComponentSub-score
P/E4.5
P/S7.6
EV/EBITDA0.0

Quality

5.6/10data confidence 100%
ComponentSub-score
ROE3.6
ROA4.0
Gross margin3.0
Op margin4.8
Net margin6.8
Current ratio9.4
FCF quality4.9
Moat5.2
Piotroski F8.9
  • Earnings quality warning: 64% FCF/NI
  • No competitive moat
  • Strong Piotroski F-Score: 8/9

Growth

2.3/10data confidence 67%
ComponentSub-score
Rev growth3.0
EPS growth1.6

Momentum

5.1/10data confidence 100%
ComponentSub-score
RSI4.5
MACD9.7
OBV10.0
MA position1.5
Volume0.0
  • Volume accumulation (rising OBV)
  • Below 200-MA, MA slope flat

Sentiment

5.0/10data confidence 33%
ComponentSub-score
Analyst rating5.0

Insider

7.5/10data confidence 50%
ComponentSub-score
materiality5.0
holder change10.0
  • No net insider activity — $0 (0.000% of mkt cap)
  • Institutions accumulating

Peer rank

3.7/10data confidence 80%
ComponentSub-score
value rank3.3
quality rank5.0
growth rank0.0

Technical

5.8/10data confidence 100%
ComponentSub-score
bollinger5.1
support resistance5.3
52w position7.0

Risk (lower is worse)

5.9/10data confidence 100%
ComponentSub-score
short interest5.1
days to cover0.0
volatility4.0
put call10.0
implied vol5.2
max pain risk3.0
beta10.0
debt equity9.9
  • Above max pain $30

Catalyst

3.4/10data confidence 100%
ComponentSub-score
earnings history1.1
earnings timing5.0
surprise avg1.8
dividend safety5.5
  • Earnings concerns: 1B/2M

How the verdict was assembled

Engine trigger

Multiple concerning factors. Consider reducing position.

Engine technical detail
verdict_path: L4:PATH_F_SELL
Passed (7)
  • MOMENTUM:5.1>=4.5
  • INSIDER:OK
  • 8K:CLEAN
  • NEWS_EVENTS:NONE_RECENT
  • EARNINGS_PROXIMITY:15d clear
  • SEMI_CYCLE_PEAK:CLEAR
  • MATERIALS_CYCLE_PEAK:CLEAR
Failed (0)

none

Warning (3)
  • MOMENTUM:5.1<5.5 (soft — BUY_NOW allowed but watch)
  • ASYMMETRY:UPSIDE_EXHAUSTED (upside=0.0%)
  • DEATH_CROSS:momentum=5.1>=5.0 recovering
Reward-to-Risk
0.00
Upside
+0.0%
Downside
6.8%
Sizing output
AVOID

SetupRecovery Death cross but MACD improving, RSI 51

EdgeNo clear edge No clear edge identified

SuitabilityAggressive MCap $2.9B<$5B

Investment implication

The F-path SELL output reflects an overall score of 4.7 below the 5.6 soft trigger — multiple weakening dimensions accumulated rather than a single hard-floor breach. The strongest dimension ( Insider at 7.5) was not enough to lift the adjusted overall above the threshold. Current asymmetry R:R is 0.00 — supplementary context, not the trigger for this path.

The strongest dimensions are Insider at 7.5, Risk (lower is worse) at 5.9, and Technical at 5.8; the weakest are Growth at 2.3, Catalyst at 3.4, and Peer rank at 3.7. The V9 engine cleared all gates with 3 warnings, producing an asymmetric reward-to-risk of 0.00 and an engine sizing output of AVOID.

What would invalidate the thesis

Falsifying conditions — when triggered, the corresponding pillar's thesis is invalidated.

  • P1Solid Financial Health Metrics

    Trip ifPiotroski F-Score falls below 5 in the next annual reporting cycle, signaling material financial health deterioration.

  • P2Earnings Miss Pattern

    Trip ifEPS surprise falls below -10% in at least 2 of the next 3 quarters, indicating estimate misses are deepening.

  • P3Technical Support Zone With Momentum

    Trip ifPrice falls below $35.84 stop-loss, more than 5% below the current $37.86, and on-balance volume turns negative.

  • P4Low Growth Moderate Valuation

    Trip ifRevenue growth remains below 0% for 3 consecutive quarters, indicating the business is contracting rather than stagnating.

Engine reasoning is mechanically derived from pipeline gate outputs. See decision view.

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