Koppers Holdings Inc. (NYSE:KOP) Stock Rated "Moderate Buy" by Wall Street Analysts

Key Points

• Analysts rate Koppers a “Moderate Buy”, with a consensus 12-month price target of $54.50. Recent calls were mixed: B. Riley lowered its target to $54 while keeping a Buy rating, and two firms downgraded the stock.
• Koppers reported quarterly EPS of $0.77, missing the $1.37 consensus, and revenue of $499.1 million versus $518.6 million expected; revenue was still up 2.8% year over year.
• Shares traded at $29.33, well below their 50-day average of $44.13. The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.09 per share, equivalent to a 1.2% annual yield.

Koppers Holdings Inc. (NYSE:KOP - Get Free Report) has received a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from the five analysts that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, one has given a hold recommendation, two have issued a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month target price among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $54.50.

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on KOP shares. B. Riley Financial cut their price objective on shares of Koppers from $62.00 to $54.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Wall Street Zen lowered Koppers from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Koppers from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th.

Koppers Stock Performance

NYSE KOP traded down $0.64 on Monday, reaching $29.33. 122,243 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 183,019. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $44.13 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $41.68. The company has a current ratio of 2.37, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.19. The firm has a market capitalization of $554.71 million, a PE ratio of -5.71 and a beta of 1.23. Koppers has a one year low of $26.02 and a one year high of $53.00.

Koppers (NYSE:KOP - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Friday, November 6th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.37 by ($0.60). The business had revenue of $499.10 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $518.60 million. Koppers had a negative net margin of 5.03% and a positive return on equity of 14.17%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 2.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.21 EPS. Koppers has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.100-3.250 EPS. Analysts expect that Koppers will post 4.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Koppers Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 27th will be issued a dividend of $0.09 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 27th. This represents a $0.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.2%. Koppers's dividend payout ratio is -7.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Stephen G. Lucas sold 1,308 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.55, for a total transaction of $58,271.40. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 34,345 shares in the company, valued at $1,530,069.75. The trade was a 3.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider James A. Sullivan sold 7,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total transaction of $375,000.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 82,898 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,144,900. This represents a 8.30% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 15,808 shares of company stock worth $754,631 over the last 90 days. 7.28% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Koppers

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in Koppers during the second quarter worth about $136,837,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in Koppers by 1.5% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,191,358 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $46,082,000 after purchasing an additional 17,833 shares in the last quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Koppers during the second quarter worth $47,652,000. State Street Corp grew its holdings in Koppers by 7.0% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 804,553 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $36,124,000 after purchasing an additional 52,289 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new position in shares of Koppers in the second quarter valued at $9,993,000. 92.75% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Koppers

Koppers Holdings Inc NYSE: KOP is a global provider of treated wood products, carbon compounds and performance chemicals. The company serves infrastructure, industrial and utility markets with products designed to preserve, protect and extend the service life of wood and other materials.

Koppers operates through two primary business areas: Railroad and Utility Products and Services, and Performance Chemicals. Its offerings include treated railroad crossties, utility poles, pilings and other wood products, as well as wood preservatives and related treatment services.

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