Principal Financial Group Inc. Reduces Stake in Koppers Holdings Inc. (NYSE:KOP)

Principal Financial Group Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of Koppers Holdings Inc. (NYSE:KOP - Free Report) by 19.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 458,306 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after selling 110,481 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 2.26% of Koppers worth $14,849,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Jane Street Group LLC increased its position in shares of Koppers by 128.7% during the 3rd quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 60,542 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $2,212,000 after purchasing an additional 34,074 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in Koppers by 5.1% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 424,871 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $15,521,000 after buying an additional 20,586 shares during the period. Barclays PLC increased its position in shares of Koppers by 356.9% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 36,941 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $1,350,000 after acquiring an additional 28,855 shares during the last quarter. Foundry Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Koppers in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $4,022,000. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Koppers by 16.0% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 66,560 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $2,431,000 after acquiring an additional 9,156 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.75% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently weighed in on KOP shares. Barrington Research reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $64.00 target price on shares of Koppers in a report on Monday, February 24th. StockNews.com raised Koppers from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th.

Koppers Stock Down 0.6 %

Shares of KOP traded down $0.19 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $29.07. 245,257 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 125,768. The stock's 50-day moving average is $30.88 and its 200-day moving average is $34.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.83, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 2.54. Koppers Holdings Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $27.33 and a fifty-two week high of $58.23. The company has a market cap of $589.12 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.26 and a beta of 1.83.

Koppers (NYSE:KOP - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 27th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.77 earnings per share (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 analyst estimates of $497.00 million. Koppers had a return on equity of 16.71% and a net margin of 3.55%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Koppers Holdings Inc. will post 4.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Koppers declared that its Board of Directors 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 buy up to 16.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often a sign that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Koppers Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 24th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be issued a dividend of $0.08 per share. This is an increase from Koppers's previous quarterly dividend of $0.07. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.10%. Koppers's dividend payout ratio is 9.09%.

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.