Orion S.A. $OEC Stock Position Cut by Pzena Investment Management LLC

Pzena Investment Management LLC lessened its stake in Orion S.A. (NYSE:OEC) by 2.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,582,596 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 112,229 shares during the period. Pzena Investment Management LLC owned 8.16% of Orion worth $24,196,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Mraz Amerine & Associates Inc. lifted its holdings in Orion by 95.4% in the 4th quarter. Mraz Amerine & Associates Inc. now owns 32,655 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $172,000 after acquiring an additional 15,940 shares during the last quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Orion by 8.2% in the 4th quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. now owns 332,594 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $1,756,000 after acquiring an additional 25,152 shares during the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Orion in the 4th quarter valued at about $53,000. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Orion by 16.4% in the 4th quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 12,340 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $65,000 after acquiring an additional 1,742 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tweedy Browne Co LLC lifted its holdings in Orion by 16.7% in the 4th quarter. Tweedy Browne Co LLC now owns 39,157 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $207,000 after acquiring an additional 5,616 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.33% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

OEC has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Orion from $7.00 to $7.50 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Orion from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, April 9th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Orion in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Zacks Research raised shares of Orion from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, April 20th. Finally, Mizuho upped their price target on shares of Orion from $4.50 to $5.25 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Orion currently has an average rating of “Strong Sell” and a consensus target price of $5.92.

Orion Price Performance

NYSE OEC opened at $6.74 on Friday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $6.55 and a 200-day simple moving average of $5.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.75, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 0.62. The firm has a market capitalization of $379.84 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -4.21 and a beta of 0.98. Orion S.A. has a 52-week low of $4.34 and a 52-week high of $12.10.

Orion (NYSE:OEC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($0.11) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.07 by ($0.18). The company had revenue of $459.50 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $434.31 million. Orion had a positive return on equity of 2.23% and a negative net margin of 4.98%. Equities research analysts predict that Orion S.A. will post 0.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Orion Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 2nd. Investors of record on Wednesday, June 10th will be issued a $0.0207 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 10th. This represents a $0.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. Orion’s dividend payout ratio is currently -5.00%.

Orion Profile

Orion Engineered Carbons SA, operating as Orion (NYSE: OEC), is a global producer of carbon black, a critical performance additive used to enhance the strength, durability and conductivity of various materials. The company’s products chiefly serve the tire and rubber industry, where carbon black imparts wear resistance and longevity, as well as the plastics, coatings, inks and battery components markets, where specialty grades deliver tailored conductivity and color properties.

Orion’s product portfolio is organized into two core segments: Rubber and Specialty and Chemical Specialties.