Franklin Resources Inc. Increases Position in Olin Co. (NYSE:OLN)

Franklin Resources Inc. raised its position in shares of Olin Co. (NYSE:OLN) by 19.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,073,087 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after buying an additional 172,768 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. owned about 0.92% of Olin worth $51,015,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of OLN. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Olin by 88.2% during the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 589 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 276 shares in the last quarter. nVerses Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Olin in the second quarter valued at $33,000. Covestor Ltd boosted its holdings in Olin by 357.5% in the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 915 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 715 shares during the period. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in Olin during the 3rd quarter worth $47,000. Finally, Denver PWM LLC purchased a new stake in Olin during the 2nd quarter worth about $59,000. 88.67% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Olin Stock Up 0.4 %

Olin stock opened at $35.47 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $42.61 and a 200-day simple moving average of $44.70. The company has a market capitalization of $4.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.60, a PEG ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 1.40. Olin Co. has a fifty-two week low of $34.85 and a fifty-two week high of $60.60.

Olin announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase program on Thursday, December 12th that allows the company to buyback $2.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the specialty chemicals company to buy up to 45% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Olin Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 14th were issued a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.26%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, November 14th. Olin’s payout ratio is currently 64.52%.

Insider Transactions at Olin

In related news, VP R Nichole Sumner sold 10,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.75, for a total transaction of $459,375.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 24,056 shares in the company, valued at $1,052,450. This represents a 30.39 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 1.80% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on OLN shares. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on Olin from $52.00 to $48.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th. Piper Sandler lowered their price target on shares of Olin from $57.00 to $51.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Olin from $48.00 to $44.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 28th. Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of Olin from $48.00 to $45.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday. Finally, BMO Capital Markets cut their price target on Olin from $50.00 to $47.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $50.14.

Olin Company Profile

Olin Corporation manufactures and distributes chemical products in the United States, Europe, Asia Pacific, Latin America, and Canada. It operates through three segments: Chlor Alkali Products and Vinyls; Epoxy; and Winchester. The Chlor Alkali Products and Vinyls segment offers chlorine and caustic soda, ethylene dichloride and vinyl chloride monomers, methyl chloride, methylene chloride, chloroform, carbon tetrachloride, perchloroethylene, hydrochloric acid, hydrogen, bleach products, potassium hydroxide, and chlorinated organics intermediates and solvents.