Quaker Houghton (NYSE:KWR) Stock Price Crosses Below 50 Day Moving Average – Should You Sell?

Shares of Quaker Houghton (NYSE:KWR) passed below its 50-day moving average during trading on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $157.15 and traded as low as $153.09. Quaker Houghton shares last traded at $154.49, with a volume of 105,167 shares traded.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on KWR shares. Wall Street Zen downgraded Quaker Houghton from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, October 31st. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price target on Quaker Houghton from $202.00 to $192.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 2nd. Zacks Research downgraded Quaker Houghton from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, October 26th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Quaker Houghton in a report on Friday, October 30th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their target price on Quaker Houghton from $165.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 25th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Quaker Houghton presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $186.00.

Quaker Houghton Trading Down 2.1%

The stock has a market cap of $2.66 billion, a PE ratio of 27.64, a PEG ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 1.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 1.71 and a current ratio of 2.47. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $157.15 and a 200 day moving average price of $150.28.

Quaker Houghton (NYSE:KWR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 29th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.39 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.10 by $0.29. The company had revenue of $544.55 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $522.88 million. Quaker Houghton had a return on equity of 9.84% and a net margin of 4.80%. Quaker Houghton’s quarterly revenue was up 10.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.08 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Quaker Houghton will post 7.98 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Quaker Houghton

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Quaker Houghton during the 2nd quarter worth about $335,290,000. William Blair Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Quaker Houghton in the 2nd quarter worth about $66,810,000. Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new stake in Quaker Houghton in the 2nd quarter worth about $37,045,000. Jupiter Topco LLC purchased a new stake in Quaker Houghton in the 2nd quarter worth about $31,472,000. Finally, Heartland Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Quaker Houghton in the second quarter worth about $26,259,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.46% of the company’s stock.

Quaker Houghton Company Profile

Quaker Houghton is a global provider of industrial process fluids and specialty chemicals. Its products include metalworking fluids, industrial lubricants, hydraulic fluids, cleaners, corrosion-prevention products, and coatings used in manufacturing and other industrial operations. The company serves customers across industries such as steel and aluminum production, automotive, aerospace, mining, and general machinery. Its solutions are designed to support processes including metal forming, machining, heat treatment, and equipment operation.