Element Solutions Inc (NYSE:ESI) Given Consensus Recommendation of "Buy" by Analysts

Shares of Element Solutions Inc (NYSE:ESI - Get Free Report) have been assigned a consensus recommendation of "Buy" from the ten brokerages that are covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation, eight have assigned a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month target price among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $26.38.

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on ESI shares. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on shares of Element Solutions from $34.00 to $30.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their target price on shares of Element Solutions from $30.00 to $24.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 28th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Element Solutions from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Bank of America raised Element Solutions from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lowered their price target for the company from $29.00 to $24.00 in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Finally, Barclays cut their price objective on Element Solutions from $30.00 to $27.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 28th.

Element Solutions Trading Up 1.5%

Shares of NYSE:ESI traded up $0.33 on Friday, reaching $21.79. 143,012 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,955,676. Element Solutions has a 52 week low of $16.77 and a 52 week high of $29.78. The company has a current ratio of 3.34, a quick ratio of 2.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $20.82 and its 200 day simple moving average is $24.46. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 1.24.

Element Solutions (NYSE:ESI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The company reported $0.34 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.33 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $593.70 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $576.73 million. Element Solutions had a return on equity of 14.68% and a net margin of 9.94%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.34 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Element Solutions will post 1.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Element Solutions Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Monday, June 2nd will be paid a $0.08 dividend. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.47%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 2nd. Element Solutions's payout ratio is 26.89%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Element Solutions

In other Element Solutions news, Director Martin E. Franklin sold 2,000,000 shares of Element Solutions stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.10, for a total value of $52,200,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 109,100 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,847,510. This trade represents a 94.83% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 7.90% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Element Solutions

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of ESI. Strs Ohio bought a new position in shares of Element Solutions in the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,172,000. Focus Partners Wealth purchased a new stake in Element Solutions in the first quarter worth about $400,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its position in shares of Element Solutions by 4.5% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 872,451 shares of the company's stock valued at $19,726,000 after buying an additional 37,204 shares in the last quarter. United Services Automobile Association bought a new position in shares of Element Solutions during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $281,000. Finally, Caxton Associates LLP bought a new stake in Element Solutions during the 1st quarter worth approximately $676,000. 92.32% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Element Solutions

Element Solutions Inc operates as a specialty chemicals company in the United States, China, and internationally. The company operates in two segments, Electronics, and Industrial & Specialty. The Electronics segment researches, formulates, and sells specialty chemicals and materials for various types of electronics hardware products.