Element Solutions (NYSE:ESI) Sees Unusually-High Trading Volume - Here's What Happened

Element Solutions Inc (NYSE:ESI - Get Free Report) saw strong trading volume on Tuesday . 2,126,721 shares changed hands during trading, an increase of 14% from the previous session's volume of 1,862,389 shares.The stock last traded at $18.21 and had previously closed at $18.00.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ESI has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Bank of America raised Element Solutions from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and reduced their price target for the company from $29.00 to $24.00 in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Truist Financial upgraded shares of Element Solutions from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $28.00 to $24.00 in a research report on Monday, April 14th. KeyCorp cut their price target on shares of Element Solutions from $29.00 to $28.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 14th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective on Element Solutions from $34.00 to $30.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Finally, Barclays lowered their target price on Element Solutions from $32.00 to $30.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 27th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Element Solutions has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $27.38.

Element Solutions Trading Down 1.2 %

The firm has a market cap of $4.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 1.28. The business has a 50 day moving average of $22.96 and a 200 day moving average of $25.32. The company has a quick ratio of 2.77, a current ratio of 3.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76.

Element Solutions (NYSE:ESI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The company reported $0.34 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.33 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $593.70 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $576.73 million. Element Solutions had a net margin of 9.94% and a return on equity of 14.68%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.34 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Element Solutions Inc will post 1.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Element Solutions Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.08 per share. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.58%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. Element Solutions's dividend payout ratio is presently 26.89%.

Insider Activity

In other Element Solutions news, Director Martin E. Franklin sold 2,000,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.10, for a total value of $52,200,000.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 109,100 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,847,510. This trade represents a 94.83 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 7.90% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC increased its position in Element Solutions by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 23,979 shares of the company's stock worth $610,000 after purchasing an additional 423 shares during the last quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. grew its stake in shares of Element Solutions by 4.0% during the 4th quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 11,297 shares of the company's stock valued at $287,000 after buying an additional 430 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System increased its holdings in shares of Element Solutions by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 66,761 shares of the company's stock worth $1,698,000 after buying an additional 545 shares during the last quarter. Equitable Trust Co. raised its position in shares of Element Solutions by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Equitable Trust Co. now owns 34,103 shares of the company's stock worth $867,000 after buying an additional 576 shares during the period. Finally, Treasurer of the State of North Carolina boosted its holdings in Element Solutions by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 98,398 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,502,000 after acquiring an additional 610 shares during the last quarter. 92.32% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Element Solutions

Element Solutions Inc operates as a specialty chemicals company in the United States, China, and internationally. The company operates in two segments, Electronics, and Industrial & Specialty. The Electronics segment researches, formulates, and sells specialty chemicals and materials for various types of electronics hardware products.