Analysts Set Huntsman Co. (NYSE:HUN) Target Price at $25.75

Huntsman Co. (NYSE:HUN) has been given a consensus recommendation of “Hold” by the eight analysts that are covering the company, Marketbeat reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating on the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $25.75.

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Huntsman from $27.00 to $25.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Huntsman from $26.00 to $25.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of Huntsman from $24.00 to $23.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on shares of Huntsman from $21.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, October 11th.

Huntsman Stock Performance

NYSE HUN opened at $19.58 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $21.98 and its two-hundred day moving average is $22.48. Huntsman has a one year low of $19.11 and a one year high of $27.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 1.47. The firm has a market cap of $3.39 billion, a PE ratio of -28.38 and a beta of 1.02.

Huntsman (NYSE:HUN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The basic materials company reported $0.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.10. Huntsman had a negative return on equity of 0.03% and a negative net margin of 1.99%. The firm had revenue of $1.54 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.55 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.15 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Huntsman will post 0.09 earnings per share for the current year.

Huntsman Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Friday, December 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.11%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 13th. Huntsman’s dividend payout ratio is currently -144.93%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Huntsman news, Director Mary C. Beckerle sold 20,201 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.42, for a total value of $432,705.42. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 5.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Huntsman

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Diversified Trust Co purchased a new stake in shares of Huntsman in the second quarter valued at about $2,180,000. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Huntsman by 383.0% during the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,417,641 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $32,138,000 after buying an additional 1,124,113 shares during the last quarter. Boston Partners purchased a new position in Huntsman during the first quarter worth $793,000. First Eagle Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Huntsman by 14.2% in the second quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 654,064 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $14,893,000 after acquiring an additional 81,109 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Acadian Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Huntsman by 97.2% in the second quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 413,104 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $9,403,000 after acquiring an additional 203,662 shares in the last quarter. 84.81% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Huntsman

Huntsman Corporation manufactures and sells diversified organic chemical products worldwide. The company operates in three segments: Polyurethanes, Performance Products, and Advanced Materials. The Polyurethanes segment offers polyurethane chemicals, including methyl diphenyl diisocyanate, polyether and polyester polyols, and thermoplastic polyurethane; and aniline, benzene, nitrobenzene and other co-products.