Orion (NYSE:OEC) Stock Rating Upgraded by StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Orion (NYSE:OEC) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report sent to investors on Tuesday morning.

Separately, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Orion from $24.00 to $20.00 and set a neutral rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, August 7th.

Orion Stock Performance

NYSE:OEC opened at $17.79 on Tuesday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $18.59 and its 200 day moving average is $21.85. The firm has a market cap of $1.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.02 and a beta of 1.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.31, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 1.39. Orion has a 52-week low of $15.54 and a 52-week high of $28.48.

Orion (NYSE:OEC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.41 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.59 by ($0.18). Orion had a net margin of 4.09% and a return on equity of 19.21%. The company had revenue of $477.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $491.14 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.53 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Orion will post 1.85 EPS for the current year.

Orion Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, January 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be paid a $0.021 dividend. This represents a $0.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.47%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 13th. This is a boost from Orion’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.02. Orion’s payout ratio is currently 5.41%.

Insider Transactions at Orion

In other news, CEO Corning F. Painter purchased 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 7th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $17.48 per share, with a total value of $349,600.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 948,776 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,584,604.48. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, CEO Corning F. Painter acquired 10,000 shares of Orion stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 22nd. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $17.69 per share, with a total value of $176,900.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 958,776 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,960,747.44. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Corning F. Painter bought 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 7th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $17.48 per share, with a total value of $349,600.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 948,776 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,584,604.48. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have purchased 47,500 shares of company stock valued at $845,225 in the last quarter. Insiders own 6.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Orion

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of Orion by 4.6% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,729,261 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $47,954,000 after purchasing an additional 76,480 shares during the last quarter. Isthmus Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Orion by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Isthmus Partners LLC now owns 113,541 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $3,148,000 after acquiring an additional 2,624 shares during the period. Jade Capital Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Orion by 420.4% during the fourth quarter. Jade Capital Advisors LLC now owns 328,041 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $9,097,000 after acquiring an additional 265,000 shares during the last quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group purchased a new stake in shares of Orion during the fourth quarter worth about $17,174,000. Finally, Grizzlyrock Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Orion in the fourth quarter worth about $23,586,000. Institutional investors own 94.33% of the company’s stock.

About Orion

Orion SA, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the manufacture and sale of carbon black products. It operates in two segments, Specialty Carbon Black and Rubber Carbon Black. The company offers post-treated specialty carbon black grades for coatings and printing applications; high purity carbon black grades for the fiber industry; and conductive carbon black grades for batteries, polymers, and coatings.