Orion (NYSE:OEC) Sets New 12-Month Low - Time to Sell?

Orion S.A. (NYSE:OEC - Get Free Report)'s share price reached a new 52-week low on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $15.17 and last traded at $15.18, with a volume of 131389 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $15.54.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have commented on OEC shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of Orion from $24.00 to $20.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Orion from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th.

Orion Price Performance

The company has a market cap of $874.23 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.35 and a beta of 1.46. The company's 50 day moving average price is $17.03 and its 200 day moving average price is $20.72. The company has a current ratio of 1.39, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.31.

Orion (NYSE:OEC - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.59 by ($0.18). Orion had a return on equity of 19.21% and a net margin of 4.09%. The business had revenue of $477.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $491.14 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.53 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Orion S.A. will post 1.85 earnings per share for the current year.

Orion Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, January 21st. Investors of record on Friday, December 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.021 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 13th. This is a boost from Orion's previous quarterly dividend of $0.02. This represents a $0.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.56%. Orion's payout ratio is currently 6.06%.

Insider Activity

In other Orion news, CEO Corning F. Painter bought 20,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 7th. The stock was bought at an average price of $17.48 per share, for a total transaction of $349,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 948,776 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,584,604.48. The trade was a 0.00 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, CFO Jeffrey Glajch acquired 15,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 7th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $18.16 per share, with a total value of $272,400.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief financial officer now directly owns 101,855 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,849,686.80. The trade was a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Corning F. Painter bought 20,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 7th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $17.48 per share, with a total value of $349,600.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 948,776 shares in the company, valued at $16,584,604.48. The trade was a 0.00 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders bought a total of 47,500 shares of company stock worth $845,225 over the last 90 days. 2.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. CWM LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Orion by 207.0% during the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,094 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $46,000 after acquiring an additional 1,412 shares during the period. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale purchased a new position in Orion during the second quarter worth approximately $54,000. nVerses Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Orion in the 3rd quarter valued at $69,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Orion by 1,375.1% in the 1st quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 3,791 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $89,000 after purchasing an additional 3,534 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quarry LP grew its stake in shares of Orion by 76.9% during the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 4,776 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $105,000 after buying an additional 2,076 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.33% of the company's stock.

About Orion

Orion SA, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the manufacture and sale of carbon black products. It operates in two segments, Specialty Carbon Black and Rubber Carbon Black. The company offers post-treated specialty carbon black grades for coatings and printing applications; high purity carbon black grades for the fiber industry; and conductive carbon black grades for batteries, polymers, and coatings.