Olin (NYSE:OLN) Shares Gap Up – Time to Buy?

Olin Corporation (NYSE:OLN) gapped up before the market opened on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $25.30, but opened at $26.65. Olin shares last traded at $24.1430, with a volume of 715,728 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $37.00 price target on shares of Olin in a research note on Sunday, May 10th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Olin from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, April 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Olin from $20.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Truist Financial lifted their price target on shares of Olin from $20.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Olin from $29.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $28.08.

Olin Stock Performance

The stock has a market cap of $2.63 billion, a PE ratio of -20.59 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $26.64 and a 200 day moving average price of $24.72. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.73.

Olin Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 14th were paid a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 14th. Olin’s payout ratio is presently -71.43%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Olin by 5.5% in the third quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC now owns 12,690,488 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $317,135,000 after buying an additional 661,730 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of Olin by 22.4% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 5,627,997 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $167,311,000 after buying an additional 1,031,498 shares during the period. State Street Corp increased its holdings in Olin by 1.1% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,830,406 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $97,043,000 after purchasing an additional 50,309 shares during the period. Pzena Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in Olin by 17.5% during the 4th quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 4,507,913 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $93,900,000 after purchasing an additional 671,250 shares during the period. Finally, Orbis Allan Gray Ltd increased its holdings in Olin by 448.9% during the 4th quarter. Orbis Allan Gray Ltd now owns 3,804,561 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $79,249,000 after purchasing an additional 3,111,393 shares during the period. 88.67% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Olin

Olin Corporation is a diversified manufacturer specializing in chemical products and ammunition. The company’s core business activities encompass the production and distribution of chlor-alkali products, epoxy resins and derivatives, and small-caliber ammunition under the Winchester brand. Olin’s chemical operations supply chlorine, caustic soda and related co-products to a wide range of end markets, including water treatment, pulp and paper, pharmaceuticals and general industrial applications.

In its Chlor Alkali Products & Vinyls segment, Olin operates multiple manufacturing facilities that produce chlorine and sodium hydroxide, along with vinyl chloride monomer and polyvinyl chloride (PVC) compounds.