JPMorgan Chase & Co. Boosts Holdings in Orion S.A. $OEC

JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings in Orion S.A. (NYSE:OEC) by 22.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 717,902 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after purchasing an additional 130,959 shares during the quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. owned approximately 1.28% of Orion worth $5,442,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in OEC. Harvey Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Orion by 15.5% in the second quarter. Harvey Partners LLC now owns 2,424,995 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $25,438,000 after buying an additional 325,995 shares in the last quarter. Divisar Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Orion by 10.9% during the third quarter. Divisar Capital Management LLC now owns 2,450,414 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $18,574,000 after acquiring an additional 241,160 shares in the last quarter. CSM Advisors LLC grew its stake in Orion by 106.5% during the third quarter. CSM Advisors LLC now owns 539,961 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $4,092,000 after acquiring an additional 278,501 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. increased its holdings in Orion by 6.9% in the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,138,131 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $16,207,000 after acquiring an additional 137,890 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CenterBook Partners LP increased its holdings in Orion by 36.9% in the 3rd quarter. CenterBook Partners LP now owns 402,716 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $3,053,000 after acquiring an additional 108,623 shares during the last quarter. 94.33% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have commented on OEC. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Orion in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. UBS Group lifted their target price on Orion from $6.00 to $6.50 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Zacks Research downgraded Orion from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. Mizuho increased their price target on Orion from $4.50 to $5.25 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Orion from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Strong Sell” and an average price target of $5.58.

Orion Price Performance

OEC stock opened at $6.57 on Thursday. Orion S.A. has a 52 week low of $4.34 and a 52 week high of $12.84. The company has a quick ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.75. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $5.94 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $5.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $369.75 million, a P/E ratio of -5.22 and a beta of 0.90.

Orion (NYSE:OEC) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($0.34) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.08) by ($0.26). The business had revenue of $411.70 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $365.79 million. Orion had a positive return on equity of 6.52% and a negative net margin of 3.88%. Analysts anticipate that Orion S.A. will post 1.73 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Orion Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 2nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.0207 per share. This represents a $0.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 12th. Orion’s payout ratio is presently -6.35%.

Orion 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.