American Capital Management Inc. Raises Holdings in Quaker Houghton $KWR

American Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in Quaker Houghton (NYSE:KWR) by 47.8% during the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 38,642 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after acquiring an additional 12,496 shares during the period. American Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Quaker Houghton were worth $4,800,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in KWR. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in Quaker Houghton in the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in Quaker Houghton by 284.8% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 304 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 225 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Quaker Houghton by 165.0% in the fourth quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 273 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 170 shares in the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Quaker Houghton by 556.9% during the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 335 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $46,000 after acquiring an additional 284 shares during the period. Finally, First Horizon Corp raised its stake in shares of Quaker Houghton by 123.3% in the fourth quarter. First Horizon Corp now owns 355 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $49,000 after acquiring an additional 196 shares in the last quarter. 77.46% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently weighed in on KWR. Truist Financial began coverage on shares of Quaker Houghton in a research note on Monday, June 8th. They set a “buy” rating and a $172.00 target price on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on shares of Quaker Houghton from $203.00 to $175.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 6th. Seaport Research Partners upgraded shares of Quaker Houghton from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $175.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Friday, April 17th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $177.00 price target on shares of Quaker Houghton in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded Quaker Houghton from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Quaker Houghton presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $174.67.

Insider Buying and Selling at Quaker Houghton

In other news, EVP Jeewat Bijlani sold 731 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.77, for a total value of $106,557.87. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 6,748 shares in the company, valued at $983,655.96. This trade represents a 9.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Quaker Houghton Trading Down 0.2%

Shares of Quaker Houghton stock opened at $151.12 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $2.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 539.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 1.40. Quaker Houghton has a 52-week low of $111.42 and a 52-week high of $183.01. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $148.52 and its 200-day simple moving average is $145.54. The company has a quick ratio of 1.72, a current ratio of 2.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61.

Quaker Houghton (NYSE:KWR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.63 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.66 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $480.48 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $463.70 million. Quaker Houghton had a net margin of 0.22% and a return on equity of 9.03%. Quaker Houghton’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.58 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Quaker Houghton will post 7.16 earnings per share for the current year.

Quaker Houghton Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.508 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 17th. This represents a $2.03 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. Quaker Houghton’s payout ratio is 725.00%.

Quaker Houghton announced that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Wednesday, May 13th that authorizes the company to buyback $250.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the specialty chemicals company to buy up to 10.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Quaker Houghton Company Profile

Quaker Houghton is a global provider of process fluids, chemical specialties and sustainable solutions for industrial applications. The company develops and supplies metalworking fluids, coatings, and corrosion inhibitors, as well as heat transfer, lubrication and additive products designed to improve productivity and extend equipment life. Its portfolio addresses a range of end markets including automotive, aerospace, defense, energy, mining, agriculture and heavy industry.

The company traces its roots back to the founding of Quaker Chemical Corporation in 1918 and Houghton International in 1865.