Clearbridge Investments LLC Has $48.79 Million Holdings in Element Solutions Inc (NYSE:ESI)

Clearbridge Investments LLC decreased its holdings in Element Solutions Inc (NYSE:ESI) by 5.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,918,577 shares of the company’s stock after selling 116,250 shares during the quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC owned 0.79% of Element Solutions worth $48,789,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Park Avenue Securities LLC raised its position in shares of Element Solutions by 79.0% in the fourth quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 60,612 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,541,000 after buying an additional 26,753 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in Element Solutions by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,328,894 shares of the company’s stock valued at $59,224,000 after purchasing an additional 29,253 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in Element Solutions by 18.6% during the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 74,709 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,900,000 after buying an additional 11,702 shares in the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in Element Solutions in the 4th quarter valued at about $423,000. Finally, Entropy Technologies LP acquired a new stake in shares of Element Solutions during the 4th quarter worth approximately $433,000. Institutional investors own 92.32% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

Element Solutions Stock Down 1.3 %

Shares of ESI opened at $22.61 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $25.60 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $26.30. Element Solutions Inc has a 12 month low of $22.36 and a 12 month high of $29.78. The company has a market capitalization of $5.48 billion, a PE ratio of 22.17, a PEG ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a current ratio of 3.34, a quick ratio of 2.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76.

Element Solutions (NYSE:ESI) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 18th. The company reported $0.35 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.35. The company had revenue of $624.20 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $598.24 million. Element Solutions had a return on equity of 14.68% and a net margin of 9.94%. On average, analysts anticipate that Element Solutions Inc will post 1.45 EPS for the current year.

Element Solutions Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were issued a $0.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.42%. Element Solutions’s payout ratio is 31.37%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Element Solutions

In other news, Director Martin E. Franklin sold 2,000,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $2,847,510. The trade was a 94.83 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Insiders own 7.90% 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.