Koppers (NYSE:KOP) Given Outperform Rating at Barrington Research

Barrington Research reaffirmed their outperform rating on shares of Koppers (NYSE:KOP) in a report issued on Monday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a $45.00 price target on the specialty chemicals company’s stock.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently weighed in on KOP. StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Koppers in a research report on Thursday, August 17th. They set a hold rating for the company. B. Riley reissued a buy rating and set a $50.00 target price on shares of Koppers in a research note on Friday.

Koppers Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:KOP opened at $41.76 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $871.53 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.71 and a beta of 1.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.98, a current ratio of 2.43 and a quick ratio of 1.16. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $37.81 and a 200 day simple moving average of $34.64. Koppers has a one year low of $20.11 and a one year high of $41.91.

Koppers (NYSE:KOP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 3rd. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.08 by $0.18. Koppers had a net margin of 3.93% and a return on equity of 23.76%. The firm had revenue of $577.20 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $531.00 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.97 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 14.9% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Koppers will post 4.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Koppers Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 11th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 25th were paid a $0.06 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 24th. This represents a $0.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.57%. Koppers’s payout ratio is 6.15%.

Insider Transactions at Koppers

In other news, SVP Leslie S. Hyde sold 2,351 shares of Koppers stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.00, for a total value of $94,040.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 50,386 shares in the company, valued at $2,015,440. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, CEO M Leroy Ball sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.59, for a total transaction of $77,180.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 298,921 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,535,361.39. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Leslie S. Hyde sold 2,351 shares of Koppers stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.00, for a total transaction of $94,040.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 50,386 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,015,440. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 11,445 shares of company stock worth $444,435 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 7.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Koppers

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Koppers by 4.5% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 902,514 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $25,452,000 after acquiring an additional 38,735 shares during the last quarter. DGS Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Koppers in the 4th quarter worth approximately $285,000. Pacific Ridge Capital Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Koppers by 17.6% in the 4th quarter. Pacific Ridge Capital Partners LLC now owns 34,540 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $974,000 after acquiring an additional 5,160 shares during the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Koppers by 25.8% in the first quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 70,982 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $2,480,000 after buying an additional 14,567 shares during the period. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new position in shares of Koppers in the first quarter worth $362,000. 88.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Koppers

Koppers Holdings Inc provides treated wood products, wood preservation chemicals, and carbon compounds in the United States, Australasia, Europe, and internationally. The company operates through three segments: Railroad and Utility Products and Services (RUPS), Performance Chemicals (PC), and Carbon Materials and Chemicals (CMC).The RUPS segment procures and treats crossties, switch ties, and various types of lumber used for railroad bridges and crossings.