Kennedy Capital Management LLC Purchases Shares of 90,997 Koppers Holdings Inc. (NYSE:KOP)

Kennedy Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Koppers Holdings Inc. (NYSE:KOP - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 90,997 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock, valued at approximately $2,948,000. Kennedy Capital Management LLC owned 0.45% of Koppers as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. US Bancorp DE raised its stake in Koppers by 145.1% during the fourth quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 2,027 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $66,000 after buying an additional 1,200 shares during the last quarter. R Squared Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Koppers in the 4th quarter worth about $69,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio raised its position in shares of Koppers by 345.6% in the 3rd quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 2,905 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $106,000 after purchasing an additional 2,253 shares during the last quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS bought a new position in Koppers in the 4th quarter worth about $136,000. Finally, EMC Capital Management grew its position in Koppers by 883.2% during the 4th quarter. EMC Capital Management now owns 6,538 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $212,000 after purchasing an additional 5,873 shares during the last quarter. 92.75% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on KOP. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Koppers from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, March 22nd. Barrington Research reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $64.00 price objective on shares of Koppers in a research report on Monday, February 24th.

Koppers Stock Performance

NYSE:KOP traded up $0.79 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $24.88. The company's stock had a trading volume of 146,160 shares, compared to its average volume of 156,114. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $28.16 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $32.08. The company has a current ratio of 2.54, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.83. The stock has a market cap of $509.75 million, a P/E ratio of 7.07 and a beta of 1.50. Koppers Holdings Inc. has a 12-month low of $22.99 and a 12-month high of $54.07.

Koppers (NYSE:KOP - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 27th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.77 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.95 by ($0.18). Koppers had a net margin of 3.55% and a return on equity of 16.71%. The company had revenue of $477.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $497.00 million. On average, equities analysts forecast that Koppers Holdings Inc. will post 4.24 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Koppers announced that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Thursday, February 27th that permits the company to buyback $100.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization permits the specialty chemicals company to repurchase up to 16.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Koppers Increases Dividend

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

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