Huntsman Corporation (NYSE:HUN) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Reduce” by Brokerages

Huntsman Corporation (NYSE:HUN) has been given an average rating of “Reduce” by the fourteen ratings firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $11.00.

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on HUN shares. KeyCorp restated a “sector weight” rating on shares of Huntsman in a report on Monday, December 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price objective on Huntsman from $10.00 to $13.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 16th. Alembic Global Advisors set a $11.00 target price on Huntsman in a research report on Monday, October 27th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Huntsman in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Zacks Research raised Huntsman from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 11th.

Huntsman Price Performance

NYSE HUN opened at $12.13 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $10.30 and a 200 day simple moving average of $9.98. Huntsman has a twelve month low of $7.30 and a twelve month high of $18.53. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.11 billion, a PE ratio of -6.38 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 1.36.

Huntsman (NYSE:HUN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 6th. The basic materials company reported ($0.03) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.13) by $0.10. Huntsman had a negative return on equity of 3.26% and a negative net margin of 5.69%.The company had revenue of $1.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.45 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.10 earnings per share. Huntsman’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Huntsman will post 0.32 EPS for the current year.

Huntsman Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 15th were given a $0.0875 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 15th. This represents a $0.35 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.9%. Huntsman’s payout ratio is -18.42%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Kelleher Financial Advisors increased its holdings in Huntsman by 2,013.1% during the 4th quarter. Kelleher Financial Advisors now owns 29,013 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $290,000 after purchasing an additional 27,640 shares in the last quarter. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Huntsman by 32.3% in the fourth quarter. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC now owns 36,543 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $365,000 after buying an additional 8,923 shares during the last quarter. Norden Group LLC acquired a new position in Huntsman during the 4th quarter worth about $144,000. DAVENPORT & Co LLC grew its holdings in Huntsman by 39.1% during the 4th quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC now owns 15,375 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $154,000 after acquiring an additional 4,325 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC raised its stake in shares of Huntsman by 61.9% in the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 3,377,627 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $33,776,000 after acquiring an additional 1,291,407 shares during the last quarter. 84.81% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Huntsman

Huntsman Corporation is a global manufacturer and marketer of specialty chemicals with headquarters in The Woodlands, Texas. Founded in 1970 by entrepreneur Jon Huntsman Sr., the company has grown through strategic acquisitions and organic expansion to establish a broad portfolio of products serving diverse end markets. Huntsman maintains a presence in more than 30 countries, operating manufacturing facilities across North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, Latin America and the Middle East.

The company organizes its operations into several core business segments, including Polyurethanes, Performance Products, Advanced Materials, and Textile Effects.