Orion (NYSE:OEC) Price Target Raised to $5.25

Orion (NYSE:OEC) had its price target boosted by Mizuho from $4.50 to $5.25 in a report released on Wednesday morning, Marketbeat reports. The brokerage currently has an underperform rating on the specialty chemicals company’s stock.

Several other analysts also recently issued reports on OEC. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Orion from $9.00 to $5.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 28th. Zacks Research raised shares of Orion from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Orion in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Orion from $5.50 to $6.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, January 12th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Orion presently has a consensus rating of “Strong Sell” and an average price target of $5.58.

Orion Stock Down 3.1%

OEC stock opened at $6.07 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $6.05 and its 200 day simple moving average is $6.88. Orion has a fifty-two week low of $4.34 and a fifty-two week high of $15.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.75, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a current ratio of 1.03. The company has a market cap of $341.78 million, a P/E ratio of -4.82 and a beta of 1.06.

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Pzena Investment Management LLC grew its position in Orion by 2.6% in the 3rd quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 4,694,825 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $35,587,000 after purchasing an additional 117,628 shares in the last quarter. Divisar Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Orion by 10.9% in the 3rd quarter. Divisar Capital Management LLC now owns 2,450,414 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $18,574,000 after buying an additional 241,160 shares during the last quarter. Harvey Partners LLC grew 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 valued at $25,438,000 after acquiring an additional 325,995 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in shares of Orion by 0.3% during the third quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,350,415 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $17,816,000 after acquiring an additional 7,045 shares during the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in Orion by 6.9% during the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,138,131 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $16,207,000 after acquiring an additional 137,890 shares during the period. 94.33% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Orion

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.