Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky Buys 52,398 Shares of Eastman Chemical (NYSE:EMN)

Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky lifted its holdings in Eastman Chemical (NYSE:EMN - Free Report) by 21.8% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 292,956 shares of the basic materials company's stock after buying an additional 52,398 shares during the quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky owned about 0.25% of Eastman Chemical worth $32,797,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Toronto Dominion Bank raised its stake in shares of Eastman Chemical by 14.7% in the third quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 39,244 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $4,393,000 after acquiring an additional 5,035 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in Eastman Chemical by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,784,102 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $310,628,000 after purchasing an additional 13,381 shares during the last quarter. M&T Bank Corp lifted its holdings in Eastman Chemical by 13.9% during the 3rd quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 17,147 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $1,920,000 after buying an additional 2,092 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC boosted its position in Eastman Chemical by 3.5% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 315,044 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $35,268,000 after buying an additional 10,695 shares during the last quarter. Finally, LRI Investments LLC increased its stake in shares of Eastman Chemical by 20.0% in the 3rd quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 3,000 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $336,000 after buying an additional 500 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.65% of the company's stock.

Eastman Chemical Trading Up 0.0 %

Shares of Eastman Chemical stock traded up $0.01 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $99.33. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,496,784 shares, compared to its average volume of 962,878. The company has a market capitalization of $11.51 billion, a PE ratio of 13.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 1.52 and a quick ratio of 0.78. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $104.92 and a 200 day moving average of $101.80. Eastman Chemical has a 12 month low of $80.71 and a 12 month high of $114.50.

Eastman Chemical (NYSE:EMN - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The basic materials company reported $2.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.14 by $0.12. Eastman Chemical had a return on equity of 15.37% and a net margin of 9.47%. The business had revenue of $2.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.38 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.47 EPS. Eastman Chemical's revenue for the quarter was up 8.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Eastman Chemical will post 7.63 earnings per share for the current year.

Eastman Chemical Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 8th. Investors of record on Monday, December 16th will be given a $0.83 dividend. This is a boost from Eastman Chemical's previous quarterly dividend of $0.81. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.34%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 16th. Eastman Chemical's payout ratio is currently 43.37%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Bank of America lowered Eastman Chemical from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and upped their price target for the company from $114.00 to $119.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their target price on shares of Eastman Chemical from $115.00 to $110.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Mizuho lifted their price target on shares of Eastman Chemical from $113.00 to $117.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Eastman Chemical from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and increased their price objective for the company from $110.00 to $125.00 in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a "sector perform" rating and set a $105.00 target price on shares of Eastman Chemical in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $112.86.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Eastman Chemical news, SVP Julie A. Mcalindon sold 4,456 shares of Eastman Chemical stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.84, for a total value of $471,623.04. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 4,403 shares in the company, valued at approximately $466,013.52. The trade was a 50.30 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Christopher Moore Killian sold 3,061 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.00, for a total transaction of $321,405.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 12,366 shares in the company, valued at $1,298,430. This trade represents a 19.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 18,021 shares of company stock valued at $1,895,948. Company insiders own 2.28% of the company's stock.

Eastman Chemical Profile

Eastman Chemical Company operates as a specialty materials company in the United States, China, and internationally. The company's Additives & Functional Products segment offers amine derivative-based building blocks, intermediates for surfactants, metam-based soil fumigants, and organic acid-based solutions; specialty coalescent and solvents, paint additives, and specialty polymers; and heat transfer and aviation fluids.