Huntsman Corporation (NYSE:HUN) Receives Average Rating of “Reduce” from Brokerages

Shares of Huntsman Corporation (NYSE:HUN) have received a consensus rating of “Reduce” from the fourteen research firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, eight have given a hold recommendation, one has issued a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $12.4091.

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on HUN shares. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on Huntsman from $13.00 to $14.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 19th. KeyCorp reiterated a “sector weight” rating on shares of Huntsman in a research note on Monday, December 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded Huntsman from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $11.00 to $14.00 in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Huntsman in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, Citigroup increased their price objective on Huntsman from $12.00 to $14.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 19th.

Huntsman Trading Down 6.3%

Shares of Huntsman stock opened at $12.00 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 1.30 and a quick ratio of 0.78. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $12.21 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $10.47. Huntsman has a 1 year low of $7.30 and a 1 year high of $17.88. The company has a market capitalization of $2.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -7.31 and a beta of 0.66.

Huntsman (NYSE:HUN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 17th. The basic materials company reported ($0.37) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.29) by ($0.08). Huntsman had a negative net margin of 5.00% and a negative return on equity of 3.97%. The company had revenue of $1.36 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.34 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned ($0.25) earnings per share. Huntsman’s revenue for the quarter was down 6.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Huntsman will post 0.32 EPS for the current year.

Huntsman Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be paid a $0.0875 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 13th. This represents a $0.35 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. Huntsman’s payout ratio is -21.34%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in HUN. Strategic Advocates LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Huntsman in the third quarter valued at approximately $27,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. acquired a new stake in Huntsman during the third quarter worth approximately $33,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in Huntsman by 104.9% during the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,935 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 2,015 shares during the period. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC raised its holdings in Huntsman by 2,182.0% in the 3rd quarter. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC now owns 4,313 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 4,124 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bayforest Capital Ltd raised its holdings in Huntsman by 986.0% in the 3rd quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd now owns 6,505 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $58,000 after acquiring an additional 5,906 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.81% of the company’s stock.

About Huntsman

Huntsman Corporation is a global manufacturer and marketer of specialty chemicals with headquarters in The Woodlands, Texas. Founded in 1970 by entrepreneur Jon Huntsman Sr., the company has grown through strategic acquisitions and organic expansion to establish a broad portfolio of products serving diverse end markets. Huntsman maintains a presence in more than 30 countries, operating manufacturing facilities across North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, Latin America and the Middle East.

The company organizes its operations into several core business segments, including Polyurethanes, Performance Products, Advanced Materials, and Textile Effects.