Orion (NYSE:OEC) Shares Gap Up on Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Shares of Orion S.A. (NYSE:OEC - Get Free Report) gapped up before the market opened on Thursday following a stronger than expected earnings report. The stock had previously closed at $14.66, but opened at $16.10. Orion shares last traded at $15.48, with a volume of 57,739 shares traded.

The specialty chemicals company reported $0.35 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.25 by $0.10. Orion had a net margin of 2.35% and a return on equity of 20.94%. The company had revenue of $434.20 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $437.03 million.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on OEC shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Orion from $21.00 to $18.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of Orion from $23.00 to $22.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Orion

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Pzena Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in Orion by 35.4% during the third quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 3,647,985 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $64,971,000 after buying an additional 954,398 shares during the last quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Orion by 21.1% during the 4th quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 3,461,950 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $54,664,000 after acquiring an additional 602,080 shares during the period. Brown Advisory Inc. boosted its position in shares of Orion by 11.3% during the 4th quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 2,617,287 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $41,327,000 after acquiring an additional 265,184 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of Orion by 11.9% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,186,942 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $34,529,000 after purchasing an additional 233,342 shares during the period. Finally, Minneapolis Portfolio Management Group LLC increased its position in Orion by 20.0% during the fourth quarter. Minneapolis Portfolio Management Group LLC now owns 1,922,698 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $30,359,000 after purchasing an additional 320,157 shares during the last quarter. 94.33% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Orion Stock Down 2.8 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a current ratio of 1.24 and a quick ratio of 0.71. The company has a market capitalization of $830.89 million, a PE ratio of 19.55 and a beta of 1.50. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $14.91 and its 200 day simple moving average is $16.40.

Orion Company Profile

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.