Olin (NYSE:OLN) Hits New 52-Week Low – Time to Sell?

Olin Co. (NYSE:OLN) shares reached a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as low as $26.28 and last traded at $26.60, with a volume of 34409 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $26.86.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have weighed in on OLN. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an “equal weight” rating on shares of Olin in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Piper Sandler lowered shares of Olin from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $41.00 to $33.00 in a report on Thursday, February 13th. UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of Olin from $35.00 to $34.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price objective on shares of Olin from $44.00 to $34.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Barclays reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating on shares of Olin in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $40.44.

Olin Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $3.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.61 and a beta of 1.45. The company’s 50 day moving average is $31.33 and its 200-day moving average is $39.07. The company has a current ratio of 1.27, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32.

Olin (NYSE:OLN) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.09 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.01) by $0.10. Olin had a net margin of 1.66% and a return on equity of 5.10%. Equities analysts anticipate that Olin Co. will post 1.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Olin Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 6th will be issued a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.00%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 6th. Olin’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 88.89%.

Olin declared that its board has initiated a stock repurchase program on Thursday, December 12th that authorizes the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the specialty chemicals company to buy up to 45% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Kenneth Todd Lane purchased 7,250 shares of Olin stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 4th. The stock was bought at an average price of $28.06 per share, with a total value of $203,435.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 7,250 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $203,435. The trade was a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 1.80% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Olin

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Olin by 34.3% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,887 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $98,000 after purchasing an additional 738 shares in the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. raised its position in Olin by 55.5% in the 4th quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 143,062 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $4,835,000 after buying an additional 51,051 shares during the last quarter. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC bought a new position in Olin during the 3rd quarter valued at about $916,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Olin by 2.9% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,295,699 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $62,168,000 after acquiring an additional 37,043 shares during the period. Finally, KBC Group NV raised its holdings in shares of Olin by 82.9% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 5,461 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $185,000 after purchasing an additional 2,476 shares during the last quarter. 88.67% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Olin Company Profile

Olin Corporation manufactures and distributes chemical products in the United States, Europe, Asia Pacific, Latin America, and Canada. It operates through three segments: Chlor Alkali Products and Vinyls; Epoxy; and Winchester. The Chlor Alkali Products and Vinyls segment offers chlorine and caustic soda, ethylene dichloride and vinyl chloride monomers, methyl chloride, methylene chloride, chloroform, carbon tetrachloride, perchloroethylene, hydrochloric acid, hydrogen, bleach products, potassium hydroxide, and chlorinated organics intermediates and solvents.