Trexquant Investment LP Sells 156,906 Shares of Element Solutions Inc (NYSE:ESI)

Trexquant Investment LP decreased its holdings in shares of Element Solutions Inc (NYSE:ESI) by 69.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 70,173 shares of the company’s stock after selling 156,906 shares during the quarter. Trexquant Investment LP’s holdings in Element Solutions were worth $1,784,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Element Solutions by 4.0% during the 4th quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 11,297 shares of the company’s stock worth $287,000 after buying an additional 430 shares during the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System raised its holdings in Element Solutions by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 66,761 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,698,000 after acquiring an additional 545 shares during the period. Equitable Trust Co. lifted its position in Element Solutions by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Equitable Trust Co. now owns 34,103 shares of the company’s stock worth $867,000 after acquiring an additional 576 shares during the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Element Solutions by 11.5% during the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 6,644 shares of the company’s stock worth $169,000 after acquiring an additional 684 shares during the period. Finally, Forte Capital LLC ADV grew its position in shares of Element Solutions by 6.9% in the fourth quarter. Forte Capital LLC ADV now owns 12,800 shares of the company’s stock valued at $326,000 after purchasing an additional 830 shares during the last quarter. 92.32% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Element Solutions Stock Performance

Shares of Element Solutions stock opened at $17.40 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $4.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.06, a PEG ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a current ratio of 3.34, a quick ratio of 2.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $24.72 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $25.99. Element Solutions Inc has a 1-year low of $16.80 and a 1-year high of $29.78.

Element Solutions (NYSE:ESI) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The company reported $0.35 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.35. The business had revenue of $624.20 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $598.24 million. Element Solutions had a return on equity of 14.68% and a net margin of 9.94%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Element Solutions Inc will post 1.45 EPS for the current year.

Element Solutions Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were given a dividend of $0.08 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.84%. Element Solutions’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 31.37%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of Element Solutions from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of Element Solutions from $32.00 to $30.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Bank of America reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $28.00 price target (down from $32.00) on shares of Element Solutions in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. KeyCorp started coverage on Element Solutions in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. They set an “overweight” rating and a $29.00 price target on the stock. Finally, StockNews.com cut Element Solutions from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $30.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Element Solutions

In other news, Director Martin E. Franklin sold 2,000,000 shares of Element Solutions stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.10, for a total transaction of $52,200,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 109,100 shares in the company, valued at $2,847,510. This trade represents a 94.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 7.90% of the company’s stock.

Element Solutions Profile

Element Solutions Inc operates as a specialty chemicals company in the United States, China, and internationally. The company operates in two segments, Electronics, and Industrial & Specialty. The Electronics segment researches, formulates, and sells specialty chemicals and materials for various types of electronics hardware products.