StockNews.com Lowers Orion (NYSE:OEC) to Hold

Orion (NYSE:OEC) was downgraded by investment analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday.

OEC has been the topic of a number of other reports. Mizuho boosted their price objective on Orion from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, May 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on Orion from $24.00 to $20.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $26.00.

Orion Stock Performance

Shares of OEC traded down $0.03 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $18.18. The stock had a trading volume of 559,892 shares, compared to its average volume of 404,746. The firm has a market cap of $1.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.28 and a beta of 1.53. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $22.44 and a 200-day moving average price of $23.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.36, a current ratio of 1.45 and a quick ratio of 0.85. Orion has a 52 week low of $15.54 and a 52 week high of $28.48.

Orion (NYSE:OEC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.59 by ($0.18). Orion had a net margin of 4.09% and a return on equity of 19.40%. The company had revenue of $477.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $491.14 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.53 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that Orion will post 2.13 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Sandra Niewiem sold 8,305 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.21, for a total transaction of $201,064.05. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 14,099 shares in the company, valued at $341,336.79. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other news, VP Sandra Niewiem sold 8,305 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.21, for a total value of $201,064.05. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 14,099 shares in the company, valued at approximately $341,336.79. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Corning F. Painter acquired 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 7th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $17.48 per share, with a total value of $349,600.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now directly owns 948,776 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,584,604.48. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders acquired a total of 44,000 shares of company stock worth $834,440 over the last ninety days. 6.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Orion

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Orion by 1.9% in the 1st quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 29,600 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $696,000 after purchasing an additional 550 shares in the last quarter. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Orion by 1.9% during the 2nd quarter. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC now owns 34,371 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $754,000 after acquiring an additional 625 shares during the period. ProShare Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Orion by 8.5% during the 1st quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 9,956 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $234,000 after acquiring an additional 783 shares during the period. Summit Global Investments boosted its holdings in Orion by 1.9% during the 2nd quarter. Summit Global Investments now owns 48,291 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $1,060,000 after acquiring an additional 891 shares during the period. Finally, Bourgeon Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Orion during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. 94.33% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Orion

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.