35,089 Shares in Orion S.A. (NYSE:OEC) Acquired by Legato Capital Management LLC

Legato Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Orion S.A. (NYSE:OEC) during the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor acquired 35,089 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock, valued at approximately $770,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. CWM LLC increased its position in Orion by 207.0% during the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,094 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 1,412 shares during the period. Lazard Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Orion by 1,375.1% during the first quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 3,791 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $89,000 after purchasing an additional 3,534 shares in the last quarter. Mendota Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in Orion in the first quarter valued at about $104,000. MQS Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Orion in the 1st quarter valued at about $221,000. Finally, ProShare Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Orion by 8.5% during the 1st quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 9,956 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $234,000 after acquiring an additional 783 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.33% of the company’s stock.

Orion Stock Down 1.2 %

Orion stock opened at $18.18 on Wednesday. Orion S.A. has a 12 month low of $15.54 and a 12 month high of $28.48. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.06 billion, a PE ratio of 12.28 and a beta of 1.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.31, a current ratio of 1.39 and a quick ratio of 0.80. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $20.80 and a 200-day simple moving average of $22.72.

Orion (NYSE:OEC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.59 by ($0.18). The company had revenue of $477.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $491.14 million. Orion had a net margin of 4.09% and a return on equity of 19.21%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.53 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Orion S.A. will post 1.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Orion Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 9th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 1st will be issued a $0.0207 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 1st. This represents a $0.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.46%. Orion’s payout ratio is 5.41%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

OEC has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. StockNews.com cut Orion from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, August 9th. Mizuho lifted their target price on shares of Orion from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, May 3rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Orion from $24.00 to $20.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Sandra Niewiem sold 8,305 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.21, for a total value of $201,064.05. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 14,099 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $341,336.79. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other Orion news, VP Sandra Niewiem sold 8,305 shares of Orion stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.21, for a total transaction of $201,064.05. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 14,099 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $341,336.79. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Dan F. Smith acquired 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 9th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $18.53 per share, for a total transaction of $46,325.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 78,772 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,459,645.16. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have bought 56,500 shares of company stock valued at $1,057,665. 6.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Orion Company Profile

Orion SA, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the manufacture and sale of carbon black products. It operates in two segments, Specialty Carbon Black and Rubber Carbon Black. The company offers post-treated specialty carbon black grades for coatings and printing applications; high purity carbon black grades for the fiber industry; and conductive carbon black grades for batteries, polymers, and coatings.