Quaker Houghton (NYSE:KWR) Upgraded by Truist Financial to Strong-Buy Rating

Truist Financial upgraded shares of Quaker Houghton (NYSE:KWR) to a strong-buy rating in a research note released on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other research analysts also recently weighed in on the company. Wall Street Zen downgraded Quaker Houghton from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, April 12th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Quaker Houghton from a “sell (d)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Seaport Research Partners raised shares of Quaker Houghton from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $175.00 target price on the stock in a report on Friday, April 17th. Zacks Research raised shares of Quaker Houghton from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, May 21st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lowered their target price 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. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Quaker Houghton presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $168.00.

Quaker Houghton Stock Up 2.3%

KWR stock opened at $143.91 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 1.72 and a current ratio of 2.45. The company has a market capitalization of $2.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 513.97, a PEG ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 1.43. Quaker Houghton has a fifty-two week low of $111.32 and a fifty-two week high of $183.01. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $136.51 and a 200-day moving average of $142.42.

Quaker Houghton (NYSE:KWR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.63 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.66 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $480.48 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $463.70 million. Quaker Houghton had a return on equity of 9.03% and a net margin of 0.22%.The firm’s revenue was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.58 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Quaker Houghton will post 7.19 earnings per share for the current year.

Quaker Houghton announced that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, May 13th that authorizes the company to buyback $250.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the specialty chemicals company to repurchase up to 10.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Quaker Houghton Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 31st. Investors of record on Friday, July 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.508 per share. This represents a $2.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 17th. Quaker Houghton’s payout ratio is presently 725.00%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Jeewat Bijlani sold 731 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.77, for a total transaction of $106,557.87. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 6,748 shares in the company, valued at approximately $983,655.96. The trade was a 9.77% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Quaker Houghton

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in shares of Quaker Houghton by 14.4% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 756,988 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $103,942,000 after purchasing an additional 95,100 shares during the period. Royce & Associates LP grew its position in Quaker Houghton by 19.2% during the fourth quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 755,740 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $103,771,000 after buying an additional 121,854 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in Quaker Houghton by 5.4% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 750,789 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $93,271,000 after buying an additional 38,261 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its position in Quaker Houghton by 9.2% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 596,618 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $66,785,000 after buying an additional 50,264 shares in the last quarter. Finally, William Blair Investment Management LLC grew its position in Quaker Houghton by 33.6% during the fourth quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 469,981 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $64,533,000 after buying an additional 118,321 shares in the last quarter. 77.46% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.