Eastman Chemical (NYSE:EMN) Rating Increased to Overweight at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Eastman Chemical (NYSE:EMN) from a neutral rating to an overweight rating in a research note published on Tuesday, Marketbeat.com reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. currently has $80.00 price objective on the basic materials company’s stock, up from their prior price objective of $70.00.

Other equities research analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Eastman Chemical from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Eastman Chemical from $78.00 to $84.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 12th. KeyCorp reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Eastman Chemical in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Evercore set a $75.00 price target on shares of Eastman Chemical in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Eastman Chemical from $80.00 to $88.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 9th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $80.08.

Eastman Chemical Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:EMN opened at $73.84 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.37 and a quick ratio of 0.63. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $74.19 and its 200 day simple moving average is $67.23. Eastman Chemical has a 1 year low of $56.11 and a 1 year high of $84.18.

Eastman Chemical (NYSE:EMN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The basic materials company reported $0.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.76 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $1.97 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.03 billion. Eastman Chemical had a net margin of 5.42% and a return on equity of 10.57%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 12.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.87 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that Eastman Chemical will post 8.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Eastman Chemical Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 8th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 13th were issued a dividend of $0.84 per share. This represents a $3.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 13th. Eastman Chemical’s payout ratio is presently 82.15%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Eastman Chemical

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in EMN. MUFG Securities EMEA plc bought a new stake in Eastman Chemical during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Altshuler Shaham Ltd bought a new stake in Eastman Chemical during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. grew its holdings in Eastman Chemical by 70.0% during the 4th quarter. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. now owns 425 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 175 shares during the last quarter. Garton & Associates Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Eastman Chemical during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Finally, Los Angeles Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Eastman Chemical during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. 83.65% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Eastman Chemical

Eastman Chemical Company (NYSE: EMN) is a global specialty materials company that develops, manufactures and markets a broad range of advanced materials, chemicals and fibers. Its product portfolio spans performance additives, functional products, and engineered plastics designed to enhance the durability, appearance and performance of end products across diverse industries.

The company’s main business activities include the production of specialty chemicals used in adhesives, coatings, building materials and consumer care applications, as well as high-performance plastics for packaging, automotive and electronics markets.