Orion (NYSE:OEC) Stock Price Crosses Above 50-Day Moving Average – Time to Sell?

Orion S.A. (NYSE:OEC)’s share price passed above its fifty day moving average during trading on Tuesday . The stock has a fifty day moving average of $5.43 and traded as high as $6.51. Orion shares last traded at $6.4440, with a volume of 735,183 shares changing hands.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. Mizuho set a $6.00 price objective on Orion in a research note on Monday, October 20th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Orion in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. UBS Group increased their price target on Orion from $5.50 to $6.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, January 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Orion from $9.00 to $5.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 28th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded shares of Orion from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Strong Sell” and an average target price of $5.67.

Orion Stock Performance

The firm’s 50 day moving average is $5.43 and its 200-day moving average is $7.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a current ratio of 1.08. The firm has a market cap of $361.83 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -11.11 and a beta of 1.07.

Orion (NYSE:OEC) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, November 4th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.29 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.36 by ($0.07). Orion had a positive return on equity of 14.90% and a negative net margin of 1.74%.The firm had revenue of $450.90 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $453.45 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.47 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Orion S.A. will post 1.73 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Orion

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its position in Orion by 10.7% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 283,138 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $3,661,000 after purchasing an additional 27,442 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its position in Orion by 86.2% in the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 149,128 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $1,928,000 after buying an additional 69,054 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its position in Orion by 3.3% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 33,857 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $438,000 after purchasing an additional 1,097 shares in the last quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd bought a new stake in Orion during the first quarter worth about $137,000. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Orion by 202.7% in the first quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 121,078 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $1,566,000 after buying an additional 81,079 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.33% of the company’s stock.

Orion Company Profile

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.