Fmr LLC Lowers Stock Holdings in Eastman Chemical (NYSE:EMN)

FMR LLC cut its stake in shares of Eastman Chemical (NYSE:EMN - Free Report) by 38.0% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 401,803 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 246,597 shares during the period. FMR LLC owned 0.35% of Eastman Chemical worth $44,982,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. D.A. Davidson & CO. raised its position in Eastman Chemical by 3.3% during the third quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 36,108 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $4,042,000 after purchasing an additional 1,160 shares during the period. Independent Advisor Alliance bought a new stake in shares of Eastman Chemical during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $231,000. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Eastman Chemical by 11.3% during the 3rd quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 14,384 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $1,610,000 after acquiring an additional 1,461 shares during the last quarter. Sompo Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Eastman Chemical by 10.1% during the 3rd quarter. Sompo Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 5,910 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $662,000 after acquiring an additional 540 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Eastman Chemical by 1.7% during the 3rd quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 216,358 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $24,222,000 after acquiring an additional 3,624 shares during the last quarter. 83.65% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Eastman Chemical Stock Down 0.4 %

Eastman Chemical stock traded down $0.44 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $101.07. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,309,228 shares, compared to its average volume of 999,933. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $105.39 and a 200-day simple moving average of $101.78. The company has a market cap of $11.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.53, a P/E/G ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 1.42. Eastman Chemical has a fifty-two week low of $80.71 and a fifty-two week high of $114.50. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 1.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80.

Eastman Chemical (NYSE:EMN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The basic materials company reported $2.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.14 by $0.12. Eastman Chemical had a return on equity of 15.37% and a net margin of 9.47%. The firm had revenue of $2.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.38 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.47 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 8.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Eastman Chemical will post 7.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Eastman Chemical Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 16th will be issued a $0.83 dividend. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.28%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 16th. This is a positive change from Eastman Chemical's previous quarterly dividend of $0.81. Eastman Chemical's payout ratio is currently 44.44%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Eastman Chemical

In other news, SVP Christopher Moore Killian sold 3,061 shares of Eastman Chemical stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.00, for a total transaction of $321,405.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 12,366 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,298,430. This trade represents a 19.84 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Julie A. Mcalindon sold 4,456 shares of Eastman Chemical stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.84, for a total transaction of $471,623.04. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 4,403 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $466,013.52. The trade was a 50.30 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 18,021 shares of company stock valued at $1,895,948. 1.93% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

EMN has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Mizuho raised their price target on Eastman Chemical from $113.00 to $117.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a "sector perform" rating and set a $105.00 price target on shares of Eastman Chemical in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company raised Eastman Chemical from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their target price for the company from $110.00 to $125.00 in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their target price on Eastman Chemical from $115.00 to $110.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Bank of America lowered Eastman Chemical from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and lifted their target price for the company from $114.00 to $119.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Eastman Chemical has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $112.86.

About Eastman Chemical

Eastman Chemical Company operates as a specialty materials company in the United States, China, and internationally. The company's Additives & Functional Products segment offers amine derivative-based building blocks, intermediates for surfactants, metam-based soil fumigants, and organic acid-based solutions; specialty coalescent and solvents, paint additives, and specialty polymers; and heat transfer and aviation fluids.