Eastman Chemical Company (NYSE:EMN) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” from Brokerages

Shares of Eastman Chemical Company (NYSE:EMN) have been assigned an average rating of “Hold” from the fifteen brokerages that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1 year price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $79.2143.

EMN has been the topic of several analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $79.00 price target on shares of Eastman Chemical in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. UBS Group cut their target price on Eastman Chemical from $75.00 to $73.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, November 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Eastman Chemical from $60.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price target on Eastman Chemical from $64.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Eastman Chemical from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Wednesday.

Eastman Chemical Price Performance

Shares of EMN opened at $79.13 on Monday. Eastman Chemical has a 12 month low of $56.11 and a 12 month high of $101.00. 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 stock has a fifty day moving average price of $69.98 and a 200 day moving average price of $65.62. The company has a market cap of $9.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.35, a PEG ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 1.23.

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). Eastman Chemical had a net margin of 5.42% and a return on equity of 10.57%. The firm had revenue of $1.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.03 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.87 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 12.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Eastman Chemical will post 8.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Eastman Chemical Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 8th. Investors of record on Friday, March 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.84 per share. This represents a $3.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.2%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 13th. Eastman Chemical’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 82.15%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Eastman Chemical

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. MUFG Securities EMEA plc bought a new position in Eastman Chemical during the second quarter valued at about $25,000. Altshuler Shaham Ltd acquired a new stake in Eastman Chemical in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. boosted its position in shares of Eastman Chemical by 70.0% during the 4th quarter. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. now owns 425 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 175 shares in the last quarter. Garton & Associates Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Eastman Chemical in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Finally, Loomis Sayles & Co. L P bought a new stake in shares of Eastman Chemical in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $33,000. 83.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.