Orion (NYSE:OEC) Stock Price Down 3.2% – Time to Sell?

Orion S.A. (NYSE:OEC) dropped 3.2% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $12.24 and last traded at $12.24. 27,676 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 94% from the average daily volume of 489,175 shares. The stock had previously closed at $12.65.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

OEC has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Orion from $21.00 to $18.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 21st. UBS Group reduced their price target on Orion from $23.00 to $22.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 20th.

Orion Stock Down 4.1 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a current ratio of 1.24 and a quick ratio of 0.71. The firm has a market capitalization of $683.25 million, a P/E ratio of 16.08 and a beta of 1.25. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $13.80 and its two-hundred day moving average is $15.61.

Orion (NYSE:OEC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 19th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.25 by $0.10. Orion had a return on equity of 20.94% and a net margin of 2.35%. The firm had revenue of $434.20 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $437.03 million. Research analysts predict that Orion S.A. will post 1.73 EPS for the current year.

Orion Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 4th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.0207 per share. This represents a $0.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.69%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 13th. Orion’s payout ratio is 10.67%.

Insider Activity at Orion

In other news, VP Carlos Quinones purchased 3,300 shares of Orion stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $13.07 per share, for a total transaction of $43,131.00. Following the purchase, the vice president now directly owns 79,702 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,041,705.14. This trade represents a 4.32 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 2.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Orion

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Jane Street Group LLC grew its position in Orion by 148.2% during the third quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 151,205 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $2,693,000 after buying an additional 90,292 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC grew its position in Orion by 320.4% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 95,512 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $1,700,000 after acquiring an additional 72,793 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Orion by 0.4% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,301,158 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $23,178,000 after buying an additional 5,378 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its position in Orion by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 606,466 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $10,801,000 after acquiring an additional 7,586 shares during the period. Finally, Carnegie Lake Advisors LLC raised its position in Orion by 72.1% during the 4th quarter. Carnegie Lake Advisors LLC now owns 69,461 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $1,097,000 after purchasing an additional 29,100 shares during the last quarter. 94.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Orion

Orion SA, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the manufacture and sale of carbon black products. It operates in two segments, Specialty Carbon Black and Rubber Carbon Black. The company offers post-treated specialty carbon black grades for coatings and printing applications; high purity carbon black grades for the fiber industry; and conductive carbon black grades for batteries, polymers, and coatings.