Quaker Houghton (NYSE:KWR) Receives Average Rating of “Buy” from Brokerages

Quaker Houghton (NYSE:KWR) has been given a consensus rating of “Buy” by the six research firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation, four have given a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $187.00.

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price objective on Quaker Houghton from $165.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 25th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on shares of Quaker Houghton from $177.00 to $198.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Truist Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $190.00 price objective (up from $172.00) on shares of Quaker Houghton in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Quaker Houghton from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 1st. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Quaker Houghton from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Monday, August 3rd.

Quaker Houghton Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of NYSE KWR opened at $161.26 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.78 billion, a PE ratio of 28.75, a P/E/G ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 1.40. The company has a quick ratio of 1.70, a current ratio of 2.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $159.94 and a 200-day moving average of $146.38. Quaker Houghton has a 52-week low of $112.18 and a 52-week high of $183.01.

Quaker Houghton (NYSE:KWR) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.19 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.66 by $0.53. The firm had revenue of $532.55 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $504.63 million. Quaker Houghton had a return on equity of 9.55% and a net margin of 4.94%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.71 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Quaker Houghton will post 7.85 EPS for the current year.

Quaker Houghton Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 16th will be given a $0.53 dividend. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.3%. This is a boost from Quaker Houghton’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.51. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 16th. Quaker Houghton’s dividend payout ratio is 36.19%.

Quaker Houghton declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Wednesday, May 13th that authorizes the company to buyback $250.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the specialty chemicals company to buy up to 10.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Quaker Houghton

In related news, Director William Osborne sold 600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $168.31, for a total transaction of $100,986.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 616 shares in the company, valued at approximately $103,678.96. This trade represents a 49.34% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 1.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. HighTower Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Quaker Houghton in the second quarter valued at $215,000. California State Teachers Retirement System boosted its holdings in Quaker Houghton by 14,543.7% in the second quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 2,499,978 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $397,172,000 after purchasing an additional 2,482,906 shares during the last quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Quaker Houghton in the second quarter valued at about $217,000. Nykredit A S acquired a new stake in Quaker Houghton during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $148,000. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC purchased a new stake in Quaker Houghton during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $707,000. 77.46% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Quaker Houghton

Quaker Houghton is a global provider of process fluids, chemical specialties and sustainable solutions for industrial applications. The company develops and supplies metalworking fluids, coatings, and corrosion inhibitors, as well as heat transfer, lubrication and additive products designed to improve productivity and extend equipment life. Its portfolio addresses a range of end markets including automotive, aerospace, defense, energy, mining, agriculture and heavy industry.

The company traces its roots back to the founding of Quaker Chemical Corporation in 1918 and Houghton International in 1865.