Quaker Houghton (NYSE:KWR) Upgraded by Truist Financial to “Strong-Buy” Rating

Quaker Houghton (NYSE:KWR) was upgraded by research analysts at Truist Financial to a “strong-buy” rating in a report issued on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other research analysts have also commented on KWR. Weiss Ratings raised Quaker Houghton from a “sell (d)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price objective on Quaker Houghton from $203.00 to $175.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 6th. Wall Street Zen lowered Quaker Houghton from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, April 12th. Seaport Research Partners raised Quaker Houghton from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $175.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Friday, April 17th. Finally, Zacks Research raised Quaker Houghton from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, May 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $168.00.

Quaker Houghton Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE KWR opened at $143.91 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 2.45 and a quick ratio of 1.72. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $136.51 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $142.42. Quaker Houghton has a one year low of $111.32 and a one year high of $183.01. The firm has a market cap of $2.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 513.97, a P/E/G ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 1.43.

Quaker Houghton (NYSE:KWR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.63 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.66 by ($0.03). Quaker Houghton had a net margin of 0.22% and a return on equity of 9.03%. The firm had revenue of $480.48 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $463.70 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.58 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Quaker Houghton will post 7.19 EPS for the current year.

Quaker Houghton announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase 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 repurchase up to 10.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Jeewat Bijlani sold 731 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.77, for a total transaction of $106,557.87. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 6,748 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $983,655.96. This represents a 9.77% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Quaker Houghton

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of KWR. Cramer Rosenthal Mcglynn LLC acquired a new stake in Quaker Houghton in the third quarter valued at about $5,035,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in Quaker Houghton by 1,897.7% in the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 321,637 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $42,376,000 after buying an additional 305,537 shares in the last quarter. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. boosted its stake in Quaker Houghton by 9.7% in the fourth quarter. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. now owns 278,576 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $38,251,000 after buying an additional 24,573 shares in the last quarter. Royce & Associates LP boosted its stake in Quaker Houghton by 3.2% in the third quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 633,886 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $83,514,000 after buying an additional 19,788 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dean Capital Management boosted its stake in Quaker Houghton by 163.4% in the third quarter. Dean Capital Management now owns 31,349 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $4,130,000 after buying an additional 19,446 shares in the last quarter. 77.46% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Quaker Houghton Company Profile

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.