Eastman Chemical (NYSE:EMN) Raised to Buy at Jefferies Financial Group

Eastman Chemical (NYSE:EMN) was upgraded by research analysts at Jefferies Financial Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note issued to investors on Monday, MarketBeat reports. The firm presently has a $125.00 price target on the basic materials company’s stock, up from their previous price target of $102.00. Jefferies Financial Group’s price target would suggest a potential upside of 32.36% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Eastman Chemical from $89.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Mizuho raised their price objective on Eastman Chemical from $91.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Citigroup raised their price objective on Eastman Chemical from $95.00 to $114.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on Eastman Chemical from $89.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 19th. Finally, Redburn Atlantic assumed coverage on Eastman Chemical in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $110.00 price objective for the company. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Eastman Chemical presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $103.12.

Eastman Chemical Trading Down 3.0 %

Eastman Chemical stock opened at $94.44 on Monday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $94.23 and a two-hundred day moving average of $86.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a current ratio of 1.35. Eastman Chemical has a one year low of $68.89 and a one year high of $102.71. The stock has a market cap of $11.11 billion, a PE ratio of 12.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 1.54.

Eastman Chemical (NYSE:EMN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The basic materials company reported $1.61 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.41 by $0.20. Eastman Chemical had a return on equity of 13.95% and a net margin of 10.16%. The company had revenue of $2.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.29 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.63 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that Eastman Chemical will post 7.71 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Adrian James Holt sold 4,735 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $87.75, for a total transaction of $415,496.25. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 2.28% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Eastman Chemical

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Eastman Chemical in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new stake in Eastman Chemical in the first quarter valued at approximately $34,000. First Command Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Eastman Chemical in the third quarter worth approximately $26,000. Sound Income Strategies LLC boosted its stake in shares of Eastman Chemical by 213.8% in the fourth quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 408 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 278 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Eastman Chemical in the fourth quarter worth approximately $38,000. 83.65% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Eastman Chemical

Eastman Chemical Company operates as a specialty materials company in the United States, China, and internationally. The company's Additives & Functional Products segment offers amine derivative-based building blocks, intermediates for surfactants, metam-based soil fumigants, and organic acid-based solutions; specialty coalescent and solvents, paint additives, and specialty polymers; and heat transfer and aviation fluids.