30,866 Shares in Quaker Houghton $KWR Bought by Legal & General Group Plc

Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new stake in Quaker Houghton (NYSE:KWR) in the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund purchased 30,866 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,904,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Allworth Financial LP acquired a new position in shares of Quaker Houghton during the second quarter valued at about $39,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its stake in Quaker Houghton by 165.0% during the fourth quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 273 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 170 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Quaker Houghton by 284.8% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 304 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 225 shares in the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Quaker Houghton by 556.9% in the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 335 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $46,000 after acquiring an additional 284 shares during the period. Finally, Kestra Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Quaker Houghton in the 4th quarter worth approximately $52,000. Institutional investors own 77.46% of the company’s stock.

Quaker Houghton Trading Down 1.4%

Shares of Quaker Houghton stock opened at $160.56 on Friday. Quaker Houghton has a 12-month low of $112.18 and a 12-month high of $183.01. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 1.40. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $159.92 and a 200 day simple moving average of $146.50. The company has a quick ratio of 1.70, a current ratio of 2.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62.

Quaker Houghton (NYSE:KWR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.19 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.66 by $0.53. The firm had revenue of $532.55 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $504.63 million. Quaker Houghton had a net margin of 4.94% and a return on equity of 9.55%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.71 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Quaker Houghton will post 7.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Quaker Houghton Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 16th will be issued a $0.53 dividend. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 16th. This is an increase from Quaker Houghton’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.51. Quaker Houghton’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.19%.

Quaker Houghton announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, May 13th that allows the company to buyback $250.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the specialty chemicals company to buy up to 10.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently commented on KWR. Wall Street Zen upgraded Quaker Houghton from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price target on shares of Quaker Houghton from $165.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 25th. Truist Financial reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $190.00 target price (up from $172.00) on shares of Quaker Houghton in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Weiss Ratings upgraded Quaker Houghton from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, Zacks Research raised Quaker Houghton from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $187.00.

Insider Activity at Quaker Houghton

In related news, Director William Osborne sold 600 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $168.31, for a total transaction of $100,986.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 616 shares in the company, valued at $103,678.96. This represents a 49.34% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 1.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About Quaker Houghton

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.