Orion S.A. (NYSE:OEC) Shares Sold by Heartland Advisors Inc.

Heartland Advisors Inc. lessened its position in Orion S.A. (NYSE:OEC) by 3.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 446,550 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 18,250 shares during the quarter. Heartland Advisors Inc. owned about 0.77% of Orion worth $7,051,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Jane Street Group LLC lifted its holdings in Orion by 148.2% in the 3rd quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 151,205 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $2,693,000 after purchasing an additional 90,292 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC raised its position in shares of Orion by 320.4% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 95,512 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $1,700,000 after buying an additional 72,793 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Orion by 0.4% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,301,158 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $23,178,000 after buying an additional 5,378 shares in the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans boosted its position in Orion by 86.6% during the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 75,867 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $1,352,000 after acquiring an additional 35,207 shares during the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its stake in Orion by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 606,466 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $10,801,000 after acquiring an additional 7,586 shares in the last quarter. 94.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Orion Stock Down 3.8 %

Shares of NYSE:OEC opened at $12.96 on Friday. Orion S.A. has a fifty-two week low of $12.51 and a fifty-two week high of $26.05. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $13.99 and its 200 day moving average price is $15.72. The company has a quick ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42. The stock has a market cap of $734.01 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.27 and a beta of 1.52.

Orion (NYSE:OEC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 19th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.35 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.25 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $434.20 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $437.03 million. Orion had a net margin of 2.35% and a return on equity of 20.94%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Orion S.A. will post 1.73 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Orion Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 4th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 13th will be issued a $0.0207 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 13th. This represents a $0.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.64%. Orion’s payout ratio is currently 10.67%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have weighed in on OEC. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of Orion from $21.00 to $18.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 21st. UBS Group reduced their price objective on Orion from $23.00 to $22.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 20th.

Insider Transactions at Orion

In related news, VP Carlos Quinones acquired 3,300 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were bought at an average price of $13.07 per share, with a total value of $43,131.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the vice president now owns 79,702 shares in the company, valued at $1,041,705.14. This trade represents a 4.32 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 2.20% of the company’s stock.

Orion Profile

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.