Quaker Houghton (NYSE:KWR) Receives Consensus Rating of “Hold” from Brokerages

Quaker Houghton (NYSE:KWR) has been given an average recommendation of “Hold” by the six research firms that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, two have assigned a hold recommendation and three have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $152.3333.

A number of research firms have weighed in on KWR. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Quaker Houghton in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on shares of Quaker Houghton from $149.00 to $171.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, November 3rd. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Quaker Houghton from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, December 6th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Quaker Houghton from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 20th.

Quaker Houghton Trading Down 0.4%

Shares of KWR stock opened at $143.09 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.47, a quick ratio of 1.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. Quaker Houghton has a 12-month low of $95.91 and a 12-month high of $148.80. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.48 billion, a P/E ratio of -292.01, a P/E/G ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.33. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $135.82 and its 200 day moving average is $131.26.

Quaker Houghton (NYSE:KWR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.08 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.94 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $493.84 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $475.06 million. Quaker Houghton had a positive return on equity of 8.64% and a negative net margin of 0.48%.The company’s revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.89 EPS. Research analysts expect that Quaker Houghton will post 7.75 earnings per share for the current year.

Quaker Houghton Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 16th will be given a dividend of $0.508 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 16th. This represents a $2.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.4%. Quaker Houghton’s payout ratio is presently -414.29%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Quaker Houghton

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. American Century Companies Inc. increased its position in Quaker Houghton by 176.2% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 54,443 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $6,094,000 after buying an additional 34,731 shares in the last quarter. Advantage Alpha Capital Partners LP grew its stake in shares of Quaker Houghton by 21.3% during the 2nd quarter. Advantage Alpha Capital Partners LP now owns 46,853 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $5,245,000 after acquiring an additional 8,215 shares during the period. Ceredex Value Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Quaker Houghton by 10.7% during the 2nd quarter. Ceredex Value Advisors LLC now owns 113,200 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $12,672,000 after acquiring an additional 10,950 shares during the period. Nordwand Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Quaker Houghton in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $280,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in Quaker Houghton by 151.2% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 912 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $102,000 after acquiring an additional 549 shares during the period. 77.46% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.