Pzena Investment Management LLC Buys 368,709 Shares of Koppers Holdings Inc. (NYSE:KOP)

Pzena Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Koppers Holdings Inc. (NYSE:KOP) by 91.8% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 770,169 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after buying an additional 368,709 shares during the quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Koppers were worth $28,134,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in KOP. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in Koppers by 1.6% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,187,926 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $43,942,000 after purchasing an additional 18,469 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Koppers by 20.7% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 568,787 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $20,778,000 after purchasing an additional 97,586 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its position in Koppers by 1.6% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 221,207 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $8,182,000 after purchasing an additional 3,402 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC lifted its stake in Koppers by 586.8% in the second quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 196,704 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $7,276,000 after purchasing an additional 168,063 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hennessy Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Koppers during the second quarter valued at about $5,671,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.75% of the company’s stock.

Koppers Stock Down 2.0 %

KOP traded down $0.75 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $36.62. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 22,860 shares, compared to its average volume of 145,252. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $36.47 and its 200-day moving average is $38.36. Koppers Holdings Inc. has a 1 year low of $33.80 and a 1 year high of $58.23. The firm has a market capitalization of $742.29 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.62 and a beta of 1.84. The company has a current ratio of 2.54, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.83.

Koppers (NYSE:KOP) last released its earnings results on Friday, November 8th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.37 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.25 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $554.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $571.80 million. Koppers had a return on equity of 16.71% and a net margin of 3.55%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up .7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.32 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Koppers Holdings Inc. will post 4.24 EPS for the current year.

Koppers Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Friday, November 29th will be issued a $0.07 dividend. This represents a $0.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.76%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. Koppers’s payout ratio is currently 7.95%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Barrington Research reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $64.00 price target on shares of Koppers in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. Singular Research upgraded shares of Koppers to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, September 20th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Koppers from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th.

Insider Activity at Koppers

In related news, CEO M Leroy Ball sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.92, for a total transaction of $189,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 315,129 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,949,691.68. The trade was a 1.56 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 6.55% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Koppers Company Profile

Koppers Holdings Inc provides treated wood products, wood preservation chemicals, and carbon compounds in the United States, Australasia, Europe, and internationally. The company operates through Railroad and Utility Products and Services (RUPS), Performance Chemicals (PC), and Carbon Materials and Chemicals (CMC) segments.