Element Solutions (NYSE:ESI) Sets New 52-Week Low – Should You Sell?

Element Solutions Inc (NYSE:ESI) shares reached a new 52-week low on Friday . The stock traded as low as $22.93 and last traded at $23.60, with a volume of 6807221 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $24.71.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ESI has been the subject of several analyst reports. Bank of America reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $28.00 price target (down from $32.00) on shares of Element Solutions in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. StockNews.com downgraded Element Solutions from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Truist Financial assumed coverage on Element Solutions in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. They set a “hold” rating and a $28.00 price target for the company. Barclays reduced their price objective on Element Solutions from $32.00 to $30.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on Element Solutions from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Element Solutions has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $30.14.

Element Solutions Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 3.34, a quick ratio of 2.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76. The company has a market capitalization of $5.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.14, a PEG ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $25.73 and a 200 day moving average price of $26.31.

Element Solutions (NYSE:ESI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 18th. The company reported $0.35 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.35. The firm had revenue of $624.20 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $598.24 million. Element Solutions had a return on equity of 14.68% and a net margin of 9.94%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Element Solutions Inc will post 1.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Element Solutions Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a $0.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.36%. Element Solutions’s payout ratio is presently 31.37%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Martin E. Franklin sold 2,000,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.10, for a total value of $52,200,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 109,100 shares in the company, valued at $2,847,510. This trade represents a 94.83 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Company insiders own 7.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Element Solutions

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. 111 Capital acquired a new position in shares of Element Solutions during the 4th quarter worth about $300,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in Element Solutions by 26.9% during the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 28,149 shares of the company’s stock worth $716,000 after acquiring an additional 5,966 shares during the last quarter. Park Square Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Element Solutions during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. increased its stake in Element Solutions by 61.6% in the fourth quarter. Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. now owns 162,075 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,122,000 after purchasing an additional 61,775 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp raised its holdings in Element Solutions by 234.0% in the fourth quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 44,681 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,136,000 after purchasing an additional 31,302 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 92.32% of the company’s stock.

About Element Solutions

Element Solutions Inc operates as a specialty chemicals company in the United States, China, and internationally. The company operates in two segments, Electronics, and Industrial & Specialty. The Electronics segment researches, formulates, and sells specialty chemicals and materials for various types of electronics hardware products.