Quaker Chemical (NYSE:KWR) Shares Down 4.7%

Shares of Quaker Chemical Co. (NYSE:KWR) dropped 4.7% on Friday . The stock traded as low as $183.64 and last traded at $183.64. Approximately 12,120 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 85% from the average daily volume of 78,729 shares. The stock had previously closed at $192.70.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on KWR shares. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Quaker Chemical from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Quaker Chemical from $200.00 to $223.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, March 4th.

Quaker Chemical Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 2.52 and a quick ratio of 1.89. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 1.48. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $196.72 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $189.85.

Quaker Chemical (NYSE:KWR) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.97 by $0.12. Quaker Chemical had a net margin of 6.16% and a return on equity of 10.42%. The firm had revenue of $469.76 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $494.53 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.89 EPS. Quaker Chemical’s revenue was down 6.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that Quaker Chemical Co. will post 8.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Quaker Chemical Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 16th were paid a dividend of $0.455 per share. This represents a $1.82 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.98%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, April 15th. Quaker Chemical’s payout ratio is currently 27.70%.

Quaker Chemical declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, February 28th that allows the company to buyback $150.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the specialty chemicals company to purchase up to 4.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Quaker Chemical

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in Quaker Chemical during the 1st quarter valued at about $25,000. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Quaker Chemical by 345.9% during the fourth quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 165 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 128 shares during the period. Mather Group LLC. bought a new stake in Quaker Chemical during the first quarter worth approximately $41,000. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Quaker Chemical in the fourth quarter worth approximately $50,000. Finally, Strs Ohio boosted its stake in Quaker Chemical by 50.0% during the 4th quarter. Strs Ohio now owns 300 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $64,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. 77.46% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Quaker Chemical

Quaker Chemical Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, develops, produces, and markets various formulated specialty chemical products for a range of heavy industrial and manufacturing applications in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia Pacific. It offers metal removal fluids, cleaning fluids, corrosion inhibitors, metal drawing and forming fluids, die-cast mold releases, heat treatment and quenchants, metal forging fluids, hydraulic fluids, specialty greases, offshore sub-sea energy control fluids, rolling lubricants, rod and wire drawing fluids, and surface treatment chemicals.