Traders Buy High Volume of Put Options on Huntsman (NYSE:HUN)

Huntsman Corporation (NYSE:HUN) was the target of unusually large options trading on Monday. Stock investors purchased 43,113 put options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 421% compared to the average daily volume of 8,275 put options.

Huntsman Stock Down 1.9%

Shares of NYSE HUN opened at $11.81 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -7.20 and a beta of 0.66. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $12.24 and its 200-day moving average price is $10.47. Huntsman has a 12-month low of $7.30 and a 12-month high of $17.88. The company has a current ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56.

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

Huntsman Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.0875 per share. This represents a $0.35 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 13th. Huntsman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -21.34%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently commented on HUN shares. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “sell” rating and issued a $13.00 price objective on shares of Huntsman in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Huntsman in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Huntsman from $9.00 to $12.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on Huntsman from $13.00 to $14.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. Finally, UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Huntsman from $12.00 to $14.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, February 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $12.41.

Institutional Trading of Huntsman

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Entropy Technologies LP lifted its position in shares of Huntsman by 453.9% in the 2nd quarter. Entropy Technologies LP now owns 107,649 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,122,000 after purchasing an additional 88,215 shares during the period. Impala Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Huntsman by 49.8% in the third quarter. Impala Asset Management LLC now owns 1,731,000 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $15,544,000 after purchasing an additional 575,800 shares during the last quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Huntsman during the third quarter valued at about $799,000. Boston Partners lifted its position in shares of Huntsman by 657.9% during the second quarter. Boston Partners now owns 982,508 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $10,102,000 after buying an additional 852,877 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Regents Gate Capital LLP boosted its holdings in shares of Huntsman by 117.7% in the 3rd quarter. Regents Gate Capital LLP now owns 463,137 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $4,159,000 after buying an additional 250,389 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 84.81% of the company’s stock.

Huntsman Company Profile

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.