Huntsman (NYSE:HUN) Reaches New 52-Week Low at $21.29

Huntsman Co. (NYSE:HUN) reached a new 52-week low on Monday . The company traded as low as $21.29 and last traded at $21.43, with a volume of 12864 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $22.48.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on HUN. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Huntsman from $32.00 to $28.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Huntsman from an “underweight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $22.00 to $27.00 in a research note on Friday, June 7th. Citigroup cut their target price on shares of Huntsman from $26.00 to $24.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, June 27th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on Huntsman from $24.00 to $26.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 7th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their price target on Huntsman from $26.00 to $23.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $26.67.

Huntsman Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49. The company has a market cap of $3.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -43.23 and a beta of 1.01. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $23.31 and its 200 day simple moving average is $24.31.

Huntsman (NYSE:HUN) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The basic materials company reported ($0.06) earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of ($0.06). The firm had revenue of $1.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.47 billion. Huntsman had a negative net margin of 1.49% and a positive return on equity of 0.67%. The firm’s revenue was down 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.20 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Huntsman Co. will post 0.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Huntsman Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.63%. Huntsman’s payout ratio is -192.31%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Huntsman

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its holdings in Huntsman by 7.2% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,258,188 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $31,618,000 after purchasing an additional 84,462 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Huntsman in the fourth quarter worth approximately $43,761,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its position in Huntsman by 24.4% during the 1st quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 665,652 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $17,327,000 after purchasing an additional 130,614 shares in the last quarter. Commerce Bank raised its position in Huntsman by 16.1% during the fourth quarter. Commerce Bank now owns 234,824 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $5,901,000 after acquiring an additional 32,535 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Acadian Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Huntsman by 1,052.7% during the 1st quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 209,442 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $5,449,000 after buying an additional 191,272 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.81% of the company’s stock.

Huntsman Company Profile

Huntsman Corporation manufactures and sells diversified organic chemical products worldwide. The company operates in three segments: Polyurethanes, Performance Products, and Advanced Materials. The Polyurethanes segment offers polyurethane chemicals, including methyl diphenyl diisocyanate, polyether and polyester polyols, and thermoplastic polyurethane; and aniline, benzene, nitrobenzene and other co-products.