Orion (NYSE:OEC) Price Target Cut to $5.00 by Analysts at UBS Group

Orion (NYSE:OEC) had its target price reduced by UBS Group from $6.50 to $5.00 in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have a neutral rating on the specialty chemicals company’s stock.

Several other brokerages also recently commented on OEC. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Orion from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Orion in a report on Friday, November 6th. They issued a “strong-buy” rating for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Orion from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Orion from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, August 9th. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Orion from a “sell (d)” rating to a “sell (d-)” rating in a report on Monday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $5.08.

Orion Stock Down 4.4%

Shares of Orion stock opened at $3.99 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $225.74 million, a P/E ratio of -6.89 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 1.06 and a quick ratio of 0.65. The business has a 50-day moving average of $5.55 and a two-hundred day moving average of $6.30. Orion has a 1 year low of $3.91 and a 1 year high of $8.64.

Orion (NYSE:OEC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 4th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.03 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.11 by ($0.08). Orion had a negative net margin of 1.75% and a negative return on equity of 4.05%. The business had revenue of $472.80 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $445.99 million. As a group, equities analysts predict that Orion will post 0.08 EPS for the current year.

Orion Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, January 19th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 11th will be given a dividend of $0.0207 per share. This represents a $0.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 11th. Orion’s dividend payout ratio is currently -13.79%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Orion

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Allworth Financial LP bought a new stake in shares of Orion in the second quarter worth $28,000. Keating Financial Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new position in Orion during the second quarter worth $37,000. Legal & General Group Plc bought a new position in Orion in the second quarter valued at $38,000. Focus Advisor Solutions LLC bought a new position in Orion in the third quarter valued at $59,000. Finally, Diversified Trust Co bought a new position in Orion in the third quarter valued at $63,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.33% of the company’s stock.

About Orion

Orion S.A. is a global specialty chemicals company that manufactures carbon black, a fine carbon-based material used to add color and performance properties to products. Its offerings include specialty carbon black for applications such as coatings, printing inks, plastics and conductive materials, as well as rubber carbon black used in tires and other rubber products. The company serves customers across a range of industries and operates production facilities and commercial operations in the Americas, Europe, Africa and Asia.