Pacific Ridge Capital Partners LLC Increases Stock Position in Koppers Holdings Inc. (NYSE:KOP)

Pacific Ridge Capital Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Koppers Holdings Inc. (NYSE:KOP - Free Report) by 41.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 30,850 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after acquiring an additional 9,009 shares during the quarter. Pacific Ridge Capital Partners LLC owned approximately 0.15% of Koppers worth $1,000,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Pzena Investment Management LLC raised its position in Koppers by 18.0% in the fourth quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 908,772 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $29,444,000 after acquiring an additional 138,603 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Koppers by 20.7% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 568,787 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $20,778,000 after purchasing an additional 97,586 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in Koppers by 5.1% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 424,871 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $15,521,000 after purchasing an additional 20,586 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its position in Koppers by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 201,557 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $6,530,000 after buying an additional 1,596 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hennessy Advisors Inc. increased its position in Koppers by 6.8% in the fourth quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. now owns 184,500 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $5,978,000 after buying an additional 11,800 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.75% of the company's stock.

Koppers Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE KOP traded up $0.01 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $27.90. The company had a trading volume of 17,191 shares, compared to its average volume of 153,245. The company has a current ratio of 2.54, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.83. Koppers Holdings Inc. has a 1 year low of $27.00 and a 1 year high of $56.96. The company has a market capitalization of $571.56 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.93 and a beta of 1.74. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $29.95 and its 200-day moving average price is $33.36.

Koppers (NYSE:KOP - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 27th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Koppers Holdings Inc. will post 4.24 earnings per share for the current year.

Koppers Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 24th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th were given a dividend of $0.08 per share. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.15%. This is a positive change from Koppers's previous quarterly dividend of $0.07. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 7th. Koppers's dividend payout ratio is presently 13.17%.

Koppers announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, February 27th that authorizes the company to buyback $100.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the specialty chemicals company to purchase up to 16.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Barrington Research reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $64.00 price objective on shares of Koppers in a report on Monday, February 24th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Koppers from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, March 22nd.

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.