Orion S.A. (NYSE:OEC) Stock Has Consensus Target Price of $5.58 According to Brokerages

Orion S.A. (NYSE:OEC) has been assigned an average rating of “Reduce” from the six research firms that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, two have issued a hold recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $5.58.

OEC has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on Orion in a report on Friday. They set a “strong-buy” rating for the company. UBS Group decreased their target price on Orion from $8.00 to $6.50 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 5th. Zacks Research raised Orion from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Orion in a research report on Thursday, October 15th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Orion from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, August 9th.

Orion Stock Down 5.2%

OEC stock opened at $3.96 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $223.54 million, a P/E ratio of -6.82 and a beta of 1.05. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $5.68 and a 200-day simple moving average of $6.34. The company has a quick ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. Orion has a 52 week low of $3.91 and a 52 week high of $8.64.

Orion (NYSE:OEC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 4th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.03 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.11 by ($0.08). The company had revenue of $472.80 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $445.99 million. Orion had a negative net margin of 1.75% and a negative return on equity of 4.05%. Equities analysts forecast that Orion will post 0.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Orion Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, January 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 11th will be issued a $0.0207 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 11th. This represents a $0.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. Orion’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -4.62%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Orion

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Pzena Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Orion during the second quarter worth $31,638,000. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Orion in the second quarter worth about $27,898,000. Sei Investments Co. lifted its stake in shares of Orion by 80.3% in the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 413,968 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $2,691,000 after buying an additional 184,377 shares in the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Orion by 13.2% in the first quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 409,592 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $2,662,000 after buying an additional 47,902 shares in the last quarter. Finally, JB Capital Partners LP acquired a new position in Orion during the second quarter worth about $2,214,350. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.33% of the company’s stock.

About Orion

Orion SA, formerly known as Orion Engineered Carbons SA, is a global specialty chemicals company that develops, manufactures and sells carbon-based products. Its portfolio includes specialty carbon black, high-performance carbon black, conductive additives and other carbon materials used in a range of industrial and consumer applications.

The company’s products help provide color, conductivity, reinforcement, ultraviolet protection and other performance characteristics in products such as coatings, paints, printing inks, plastics, adhesives, sealants, batteries, tires and other rubber goods.