Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. Sells 11,584 Shares of Koppers Holdings Inc. (NYSE:KOP)

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Koppers Holdings Inc. (NYSE:KOP - Free Report) by 2.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 413,287 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after selling 11,584 shares during the quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. owned about 2.04% of Koppers worth $13,390,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. US Bancorp DE raised its holdings in shares of Koppers by 145.1% during the 4th quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 2,027 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $66,000 after acquiring an additional 1,200 shares in the last quarter. Denali Advisors LLC raised its stake in Koppers by 45.9% during the fourth quarter. Denali Advisors LLC now owns 21,300 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $690,000 after purchasing an additional 6,700 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its position in Koppers by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 201,557 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $6,530,000 after purchasing an additional 1,596 shares during the last quarter. Waterfront Wealth Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Koppers in the 4th quarter worth $428,000. Finally, New York State Common Retirement Fund increased its holdings in shares of Koppers by 54.0% in the 4th quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 17,970 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $582,000 after buying an additional 6,300 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.75% of the company's stock.

Remove Ads

Koppers Trading Down 1.3 %

Shares of Koppers stock traded down $0.37 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $28.34. The stock had a trading volume of 228,372 shares, compared to its average volume of 143,120. The stock has a market cap of $580.57 million, a PE ratio of 8.05 and a beta of 1.74. Koppers Holdings Inc. has a 12 month low of $27.00 and a 12 month high of $56.96. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $30.19 and its 200-day simple moving average is $33.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.83, a current ratio of 2.54 and a quick ratio of 1.13.

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

Koppers Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 24th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th were issued a $0.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 7th. This is a boost from Koppers's previous quarterly dividend of $0.07. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.13%. Koppers's dividend payout ratio is presently 13.17%.

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

KOP has been the subject of several recent research reports. StockNews.com upgraded Koppers from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday. Barrington Research reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $64.00 target price on shares of Koppers in a report on Monday, February 24th.

About Koppers

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.