Orion (NYSE:OEC) Upgraded at Wall Street Zen

Orion (NYSE:OEC) was upgraded by Wall Street Zen from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a note issued to investors on Tuesday.

A number of other equities research analysts have also issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Orion in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Mizuho raised their price objective on shares of Orion from $4.50 to $5.25 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Zacks Research cut shares of Orion from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Orion from $9.00 to $5.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 28th. Finally, UBS Group increased their target price on Orion from $6.00 to $6.50 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Strong Sell” and an average target price of $5.58.

Orion Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE OEC opened at $5.22 on Tuesday. Orion has a 1 year low of $4.34 and a 1 year high of $13.85. The firm has a market cap of $293.67 million, a P/E ratio of -4.14 and a beta of 1.05. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $5.95 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $6.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.75, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a current ratio of 1.03.

Orion (NYSE:OEC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 17th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($0.34) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.08) by ($0.26). The business had revenue of $411.70 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $365.79 million. Orion had a positive return on equity of 6.52% and a negative net margin of 3.88%. Research analysts forecast that Orion will post 1.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Orion

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in OEC. Royal Bank of Canada raised its stake in Orion by 10.7% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 283,138 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $3,661,000 after purchasing an additional 27,442 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its position in Orion by 86.2% in the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 149,128 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $1,928,000 after purchasing an additional 69,054 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Orion by 3.3% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 33,857 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $438,000 after purchasing an additional 1,097 shares during the period. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd bought a new position in shares of Orion during the 1st quarter worth about $137,000. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC raised its position in shares of Orion by 202.7% during the first quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 121,078 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $1,566,000 after buying an additional 81,079 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.33% of the company’s stock.

Orion Company Profile

Orion Engineered Carbons SA, operating as Orion (NYSE: OEC), is a global producer of carbon black, a critical performance additive used to enhance the strength, durability and conductivity of various materials. The company’s products chiefly serve the tire and rubber industry, where carbon black imparts wear resistance and longevity, as well as the plastics, coatings, inks and battery components markets, where specialty grades deliver tailored conductivity and color properties.

Orion’s product portfolio is organized into two core segments: Rubber and Specialty and Chemical Specialties.