Texas Permanent School Fund Corp Lowers Stock Holdings in Koppers Holdings Inc. (NYSE:KOP)

Texas Permanent School Fund Corp lowered its holdings in shares of Koppers Holdings Inc. (NYSE:KOP) by 2.2% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 18,001 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 403 shares during the quarter. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp’s holdings in Koppers were worth $614,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in KOP. Raymond James & Associates raised its position in Koppers by 23.2% during the first quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 11,169 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $307,000 after acquiring an additional 2,101 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in Koppers by 1.7% during the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 229,374 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $6,313,000 after buying an additional 3,781 shares in the last quarter. Citigroup Inc. increased its stake in Koppers by 11.1% during the 1st quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 18,887 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $520,000 after buying an additional 1,889 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can increased its stake in Koppers by 6.0% during the 1st quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 7,518 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $212,000 after buying an additional 425 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MetLife Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Koppers by 45.6% during the 1st quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 12,105 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $333,000 after buying an additional 3,789 shares in the last quarter. 88.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO M Leroy Ball sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.59, for a total value of $77,180.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 298,921 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,535,361.39. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, SVP Leslie S. Hyde sold 2,351 shares of Koppers stock in a transaction on Friday, September 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.00, for a total value of $94,040.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 50,386 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,015,440. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO M Leroy Ball sold 2,000 shares of Koppers stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.59, for a total value of $77,180.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 298,921 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,535,361.39. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 20,053 shares of company stock valued at $817,232 in the last quarter. Insiders own 7.00% of the company’s stock.

Koppers Trading Down 0.3 %

Shares of KOP stock opened at $43.19 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 2.24, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.81. Koppers Holdings Inc. has a twelve month low of $27.94 and a twelve month high of $44.18. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $38.79 and its 200-day moving average price is $36.31. The stock has a market cap of $899.35 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.26 and a beta of 1.84.

Koppers (NYSE:KOP) last posted its earnings results on Friday, November 3rd. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.32 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.27 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $550.40 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $555.75 million. Koppers had a net margin of 4.24% and a return on equity of 23.16%. Koppers’s revenue was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.19 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Koppers Holdings Inc. will post 4.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Koppers Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 11th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 24th will be paid a $0.06 dividend. This represents a $0.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.56%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 22nd. Koppers’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 5.70%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

KOP has been the topic of several recent research reports. B. Riley reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $50.00 target price on shares of Koppers in a research note on Friday, September 15th. Barrington Research reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $45.00 target price on shares of Koppers in a research note on Monday, September 18th. Finally, StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Koppers in a research note on Thursday, October 5th. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock.

Koppers Company Profile

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.