Geode Capital Management LLC Lowers Stock Holdings in Koppers Holdings Inc. (NYSE:KOP)

Geode Capital Management LLC trimmed its position in shares of Koppers Holdings Inc. (NYSE:KOP - Free Report) by 3.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 454,681 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after selling 14,218 shares during the quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC owned about 2.24% of Koppers worth $14,736,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of KOP. Pzena Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Koppers by 18.0% during the fourth quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 908,772 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $29,444,000 after buying an additional 138,603 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in Koppers by 20.7% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 568,787 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $20,778,000 after acquiring an additional 97,586 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in Koppers by 112.7% during the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 141,582 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $4,587,000 after acquiring an additional 75,022 shares during the period. Jane Street Group LLC grew its stake in Koppers by 128.7% during the 3rd quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 60,542 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $2,212,000 after purchasing an additional 34,074 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC grew its stake in Koppers by 356.9% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 36,941 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $1,350,000 after purchasing an additional 28,855 shares during the last quarter. 92.75% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on KOP shares. Barrington Research reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $64.00 target price on shares of Koppers in a report on Monday, February 24th. StockNews.com raised shares of Koppers from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, March 22nd.

Koppers Stock Performance

KOP traded up $0.08 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $24.73. 247,308 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 157,569. The firm has a market capitalization of $506.56 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.02 and a beta of 1.50. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $27.95 and its 200 day simple moving average is $31.90. The company has a current ratio of 2.54, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.83. Koppers Holdings Inc. has a 1-year low of $22.99 and a 1-year high of $54.07.

Koppers (NYSE:KOP - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 27th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.77 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.95 by ($0.18). Koppers had a return on equity of 16.71% and a net margin of 3.55%. The company had revenue of $477.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $497.00 million. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Koppers Holdings Inc. will post 4.24 earnings per share for the current year.

Koppers Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 24th. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th were paid a $0.08 dividend. This is a boost from Koppers's previous quarterly dividend of $0.07. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.29%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 7th. Koppers's payout ratio is currently 13.17%.

Koppers declared that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Thursday, February 27th that permits the company to repurchase $100.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the specialty chemicals company to buy up to 16.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Koppers 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 Railroad and Utility Products and Services (RUPS), Performance Chemicals (PC), and Carbon Materials and Chemicals (CMC) segments.