Orion (NYSE:OEC) Rating Increased to Hold at Wall Street Zen

Orion (NYSE:OEC) was upgraded by Wall Street Zen from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report issued on Tuesday.

Several other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on the company. Mizuho upped their target price on Orion from $4.50 to $5.25 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. UBS Group raised their target price on Orion from $6.00 to $6.50 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Orion in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Orion from $9.00 to $5.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 28th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded shares of Orion from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Strong Sell” and an average price target of $5.58.

Orion Trading Up 6.1%

Shares of Orion stock opened at $5.22 on Tuesday. Orion has a 52-week low of $4.34 and a 52-week high of $13.85. The company has a quick ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.75. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $5.95 and its 200-day simple moving average is $6.06. The firm has a market cap of $293.67 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -4.14 and a beta of 1.05.

Orion (NYSE:OEC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 17th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($0.34) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.08) by ($0.26). Orion had a negative net margin of 3.88% and a positive return on equity of 6.52%. The company had revenue of $411.70 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $365.79 million. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Orion will post 1.73 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Orion

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Medina Value Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Orion by 245.3% in the third quarter. Medina Value Partners LLC now owns 1,238,058 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $9,384,000 after purchasing an additional 879,479 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Orion by 361.3% during the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 874,279 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $4,616,000 after purchasing an additional 684,749 shares in the last quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC lifted its holdings in Orion by 190.0% in the third quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC now owns 582,141 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $4,413,000 after purchasing an additional 381,388 shares during the period. CastleKnight Management LP lifted its holdings in Orion by 376.2% in the fourth quarter. CastleKnight Management LP now owns 471,941 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $2,492,000 after purchasing an additional 372,841 shares during the period. Finally, Lazard Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Orion in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,910,000. Institutional investors own 94.33% of the company’s stock.

Orion Company Profile

Orion Engineered Carbons SA, operating as Orion (NYSE: OEC), is a global producer of carbon black, a critical performance additive used to enhance the strength, durability and conductivity of various materials. The company’s products chiefly serve the tire and rubber industry, where carbon black imparts wear resistance and longevity, as well as the plastics, coatings, inks and battery components markets, where specialty grades deliver tailored conductivity and color properties.

Orion’s product portfolio is organized into two core segments: Rubber and Specialty and Chemical Specialties.