Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Lowers Stock Position in Element Solutions Inc. $ESI

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System trimmed its holdings in Element Solutions Inc. (NYSE:ESI) by 43.3% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 43,110 shares of the company’s stock after selling 32,916 shares during the quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings in Element Solutions were worth $1,085,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in Element Solutions during the 2nd quarter worth $26,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Element Solutions by 154.8% in the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,116 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 678 shares during the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Element Solutions by 710.1% during the second quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 1,288 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 1,129 shares during the period. American National Bank & Trust purchased a new position in shares of Element Solutions during the second quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp grew its holdings in shares of Element Solutions by 462.5% during the second quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 2,160 shares of the company’s stock worth $49,000 after buying an additional 1,776 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.32% of the company’s stock.

Element Solutions Stock Performance

Shares of ESI stock opened at $28.48 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 4.05, a quick ratio of 3.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $26.31 and a 200-day simple moving average of $25.73. The company has a market cap of $6.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 1.28. Element Solutions Inc. has a 12-month low of $16.77 and a 12-month high of $29.75.

Element Solutions (NYSE:ESI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 28th. The company reported $0.41 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.39 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $656.10 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $645.13 million. Element Solutions had a return on equity of 14.01% and a net margin of 9.58%.Element Solutions’s quarterly revenue was up 1.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.39 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Element Solutions Inc. will post 1.45 EPS for the current year.

Element Solutions Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 1st were given a $0.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 1st. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. Element Solutions’s dividend payout ratio is currently 32.32%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have commented on ESI shares. CJS Securities raised Element Solutions to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. Truist Financial boosted their target price on Element Solutions from $28.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Element Solutions in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Bank of America increased their price target on Element Solutions from $29.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 14th. Finally, Mizuho dropped their price objective on shares of Element Solutions from $31.00 to $29.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, November 20th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $30.88.

Insider Activity at Element Solutions

In related news, insider Matthew Liebowitz sold 37,000 shares of Element Solutions stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.60, for a total transaction of $984,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 117,393 shares in the company, valued at $3,122,653.80. The trade was a 23.96% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Ian G. H. Ashken sold 292,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.00, for a total value of $7,884,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 306,880 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,285,760. The trade was a 48.76% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders own 6.90% of the company’s stock.

Element Solutions Company Profile

Element Solutions Inc is a global specialty chemicals company that develops and supplies highly engineered chemistries to performance-driven end markets. The company’s solutions serve customers across the electronics, energy, transportation, consumer and industrial sectors, with a particular emphasis on electronics chemicals, metal plating, and industrial coatings additives.

In the electronics market, Element Solutions provides a range of plating and surface-treatment chemistries used in the manufacture of printed circuit boards, semiconductor devices, and advanced display technologies.