Olin Co. (NYSE:OLN) Receives Consensus Rating of "Hold" from Brokerages

Shares of Olin Co. (NYSE:OLN - Get Free Report) have been assigned an average rating of "Hold" from the sixteen ratings firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, ten have given a hold recommendation and five have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price objective among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $40.44.

Several research firms have issued reports on OLN. Bank of America raised Olin from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and cut their price objective for the company from $48.00 to $40.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Olin from $43.00 to $34.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada lowered shares of Olin from an "outperform" rating to a "sector perform" rating and decreased their price target for the company from $45.00 to $30.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Olin from $40.00 to $31.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Citigroup reduced their price objective on shares of Olin from $48.00 to $45.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 16th.

Olin Stock Down 0.6 %

Shares of Olin stock traded down $0.17 during trading on Monday, reaching $27.52. The stock had a trading volume of 1,195,076 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,806,587. The company has a current ratio of 1.27, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32. The company has a market capitalization of $3.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.57 and a beta of 1.45. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $31.92 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $39.39. Olin has a 52 week low of $26.48 and a 52 week high of $60.60.

Olin (NYSE:OLN - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.09 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.01) by $0.10. Olin had a net margin of 1.66% and a return on equity of 5.10%. Sell-side analysts predict that Olin will post 1.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Olin announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Thursday, December 12th that allows the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the specialty chemicals company to buy up to 45% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity at Olin

In other news, CEO Kenneth Todd Lane acquired 7,250 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 4th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $28.06 per share, with a total value of $203,435.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 7,250 shares in the company, valued at approximately $203,435. This represents a ∞ increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 1.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Olin

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Blue Trust Inc. grew its stake in shares of Olin by 34.3% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,887 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $98,000 after buying an additional 738 shares during the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. grew its position in Olin by 55.5% during the 4th quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 143,062 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $4,835,000 after acquiring an additional 51,051 shares during the last quarter. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC bought a new position in Olin during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $916,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Olin by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,295,699 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $62,168,000 after purchasing an additional 37,043 shares during the period. Finally, KBC Group NV lifted its position in Olin by 82.9% in the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 5,461 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $185,000 after purchasing an additional 2,476 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 88.67% of the company's stock.

Olin Company Profile

Olin Corporation manufactures and distributes chemical products in the United States, Europe, Asia Pacific, Latin America, and Canada. It operates through three segments: Chlor Alkali Products and Vinyls; Epoxy; and Winchester. The Chlor Alkali Products and Vinyls segment offers chlorine and caustic soda, ethylene dichloride and vinyl chloride monomers, methyl chloride, methylene chloride, chloroform, carbon tetrachloride, perchloroethylene, hydrochloric acid, hydrogen, bleach products, potassium hydroxide, and chlorinated organics intermediates and solvents.