Huntsman (NYSE:HUN) Hits New 52-Week Low After Analyst Downgrade

Huntsman Co. (NYSE:HUN)’s share price hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Monday after Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on the stock from $22.00 to $20.00. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an overweight rating on the stock. Huntsman traded as low as $15.22 and last traded at $15.44, with a volume of 543260 shares. The stock had previously closed at $15.82.

HUN has been the topic of several other reports. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on Huntsman from $17.00 to $18.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Citigroup dropped their price objective on Huntsman from $22.00 to $19.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their target price on Huntsman from $22.00 to $19.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Huntsman from $25.00 to $22.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Mizuho lowered their price objective on shares of Huntsman from $23.00 to $21.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $20.25.

Institutional Trading of Huntsman

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Cerity Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Huntsman by 242.4% during the 3rd quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 44,970 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,088,000 after acquiring an additional 31,837 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can grew its holdings in Huntsman by 152.7% during the third quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 99,405 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,440,000 after purchasing an additional 60,072 shares during the period. Captrust Financial Advisors increased its position in Huntsman by 47.5% in the third quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 31,263 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $757,000 after buying an additional 10,064 shares in the last quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Huntsman by 1,066.7% during the 3rd quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC now owns 281,340 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $6,808,000 after buying an additional 257,225 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Edgestream Partners L.P. grew its stake in shares of Huntsman by 126.7% during the 3rd quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. now owns 132,681 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $3,211,000 after acquiring an additional 74,155 shares during the period. 84.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Huntsman Stock Down 2.6 %

The company has a market capitalization of $2.68 billion, a PE ratio of -14.02 and a beta of 0.95. The company’s fifty day moving average is $17.04 and its 200-day moving average is $19.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 1.36.

Huntsman (NYSE:HUN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 17th. The basic materials company reported ($0.25) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.07) by ($0.18). The firm had revenue of $1.45 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.45 billion. Huntsman had a negative net margin of 3.13% and a negative return on equity of 0.39%. As a group, analysts predict that Huntsman Co. will post 0.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Huntsman Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. Huntsman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -90.91%.

About Huntsman

Huntsman Corporation manufactures and sells diversified organic chemical products worldwide. The company operates in three segments: Polyurethanes, Performance Products, and Advanced Materials. The Polyurethanes segment offers polyurethane chemicals, including methyl diphenyl diisocyanate, polyether and polyester polyols, and thermoplastic polyurethane; and aniline, benzene, nitrobenzene and other co-products.