Quaker Houghton (KWR) - What Are Brokerages Saying About This Stock?

Key Points

• Analysts are broadly bullish: Six analysts give Quaker Houghton an average “Buy” rating, with an average 12-month price target of $188. Recent upgrades include Truist Financial raising its target to $190 and Zacks Research assigning a “Strong Buy.”
• Quarterly results exceeded expectations: The company reported $2.19 in earnings per share versus the $1.66 consensus estimate, while revenue rose 10.2% year over year to $532.55 million.
• The dividend was increased: Quaker Houghton raised its quarterly dividend to $0.53 per share, equivalent to $2.12 annually and a 1.4% yield. Shares recently traded at $156.47, below the analyst consensus target.

Shares of Quaker Houghton (NYSE:KWR - Get Free Report) have received an average recommendation of "Buy" from the six analysts that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation, four have issued a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price target among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $188.00.

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Weiss Ratings upgraded Quaker Houghton from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Truist Financial reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $190.00 price target (up from $172.00) on shares of Quaker Houghton in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Wall Street Zen upgraded Quaker Houghton from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price objective on Quaker Houghton from $165.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 25th. Finally, Zacks Research raised Quaker Houghton from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, August 6th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Quaker Houghton news, Director William Osborne sold 600 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $168.31, for a total transaction of $100,986.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 616 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $103,678.96. This trade represents a 49.34% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 1.00% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Quaker Houghton

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Quaker Houghton by 14.4% in the third quarter. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,212 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $349,000 after acquiring an additional 278 shares during the period. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Quaker Houghton by 2.7% during the second quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 3,111 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $494,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Quaker Houghton during the second quarter worth $241,000. Tidal Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of Quaker Houghton during the second quarter worth $776,000. Finally, WINTON GROUP Ltd acquired a new position in Quaker Houghton during the second quarter valued at $4,738,000. 77.46% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Quaker Houghton Trading Down 0.9%

Shares of Quaker Houghton stock opened at $156.47 on Thursday. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $160.35 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $151.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.89, a PEG ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 1.40. Quaker Houghton has a 12-month low of $112.18 and a 12-month high of $183.01. The company has a current ratio of 2.46, a quick ratio of 1.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62.

Quaker Houghton (NYSE:KWR - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.19 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.66 by $0.53. The business had revenue of $532.55 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $504.63 million. Quaker Houghton had a net margin of 4.94% and a return on equity of 9.55%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 10.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.71 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Quaker Houghton will post 7.85 EPS for the current year.

Quaker Houghton Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 30th. Investors of record on Friday, October 16th will be issued a $0.53 dividend. This is a boost from Quaker Houghton's previous quarterly dividend of $0.5080. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 16th. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.4%. Quaker Houghton's dividend payout ratio is currently 37.79%.

About Quaker Houghton

Quaker Houghton NYSE: KWR is a global provider of industrial process fluids and chemical products used in manufacturing and other heavy industries. The company develops, produces and supplies fluids, lubricants, cleaners, corrosion preventives and specialty chemical solutions designed to support metalworking, forming, treating and finishing processes.

Its products are used by customers in industries including steel, aluminum, automotive, aerospace, mining, machinery, metal packaging and other general manufacturing markets.

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