Heartland Advisors Inc. Grows Stake in Quaker Houghton $KWR

Heartland Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Quaker Houghton (NYSE:KWR) by 4.6% in the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 129,793 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after acquiring an additional 5,715 shares during the period. Heartland Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Quaker Houghton were worth $16,124,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of KWR. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC bought a new position in Quaker Houghton in the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in Quaker Houghton by 284.8% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 304 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 225 shares in the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its stake in Quaker Houghton by 165.0% during the 4th quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 273 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 170 shares in the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC raised its holdings in Quaker Houghton by 556.9% in the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 335 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $46,000 after buying an additional 284 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Horizon Corp raised its holdings in Quaker Houghton by 123.3% in the fourth quarter. First Horizon Corp now owns 355 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $49,000 after buying an additional 196 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.46% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on KWR shares. Seaport Research Partners upgraded shares of Quaker Houghton from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $175.00 price target on the stock in a report on Friday, April 17th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Quaker Houghton from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, April 12th. Weiss Ratings raised Quaker Houghton from a “sell (d)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Zacks Research upgraded Quaker Houghton from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. Finally, Truist Financial initiated coverage on Quaker Houghton in a report on Monday, June 8th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $172.00 target price for the company. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $174.67.

Insider Buying and Selling at Quaker Houghton

In related news, EVP Jeewat Bijlani sold 731 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.77, for a total value of $106,557.87. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 6,748 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $983,655.96. This trade represents a 9.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 1.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Quaker Houghton Stock Down 2.8%

Quaker Houghton stock opened at $150.41 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $2.61 billion, a PE ratio of 537.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 1.72 and a current ratio of 2.45. Quaker Houghton has a one year low of $111.42 and a one year high of $183.01. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $147.32 and a 200 day moving average of $145.08.

Quaker Houghton (NYSE:KWR) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.63 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.66 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $480.48 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $463.70 million. Quaker Houghton had a net margin of 0.22% and a return on equity of 9.03%. The firm’s revenue was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.58 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Quaker Houghton will post 7.16 EPS for the current year.

Quaker Houghton Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 17th will be paid a $0.508 dividend. This represents a $2.03 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 17th. Quaker Houghton’s dividend payout ratio is 725.00%.

Quaker Houghton declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Wednesday, May 13th that allows the company to repurchase $250.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the specialty chemicals company to purchase up to 10.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

About Quaker Houghton

Quaker Houghton is a global provider of process fluids, chemical specialties and sustainable solutions for industrial applications. The company develops and supplies metalworking fluids, coatings, and corrosion inhibitors, as well as heat transfer, lubrication and additive products designed to improve productivity and extend equipment life. Its portfolio addresses a range of end markets including automotive, aerospace, defense, energy, mining, agriculture and heavy industry.

The company traces its roots back to the founding of Quaker Chemical Corporation in 1918 and Houghton International in 1865.