Quaker Houghton (NYSE:KWR) Stock Rating Lowered by Zacks Research

Quaker Houghton (NYSE:KWR) was downgraded by Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a note issued to investors on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently commented on KWR. Wall Street Zen downgraded Quaker Houghton from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, April 12th. Seaport Research Partners upgraded Quaker Houghton from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $175.00 price target for the company in a report on Friday, April 17th. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price objective on Quaker Houghton from $190.00 to $184.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on shares of Quaker Houghton from $203.00 to $175.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 6th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $179.50.

Quaker Houghton Stock Performance

Quaker Houghton stock opened at $138.50 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $136.53 and a 200-day simple moving average of $140.44. Quaker Houghton has a 1-year low of $99.18 and a 1-year high of $183.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 2.42 and a quick ratio of 1.72. The stock has a market cap of $2.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1,154.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 1.43.

Quaker Houghton (NYSE:KWR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 23rd. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.65 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.71 by ($0.06). Quaker Houghton had a negative net margin of 0.13% and a positive return on equity of 8.99%. The firm had revenue of $468.48 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $465.17 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.33 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that Quaker Houghton will post 7.99 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Quaker Houghton

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. MQS Management LLC purchased a new stake in Quaker Houghton during the first quarter worth about $246,000. Inspire Investing LLC boosted its stake in shares of Quaker Houghton by 22.3% in the first quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 4,199 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $522,000 after purchasing an additional 766 shares during the period. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA boosted its stake in shares of Quaker Houghton by 11.3% in the first quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 2,806 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $349,000 after purchasing an additional 284 shares during the period. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System acquired a new position in shares of Quaker Houghton in the first quarter valued at approximately $758,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Quaker Houghton by 5.4% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 68,059 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $9,345,000 after purchasing an additional 3,505 shares in the last quarter. 77.46% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.