Element Solutions (NYSE:ESI) Trading Up 9.5% Following Strong Earnings

Key Points

• Shares jumped 9.5% after Element Solutions reported Q2 EPS of $0.41 versus $0.38 expected and revenue of $840.0M (consensus $764.16M), with revenue up 41.5% year-over-year.
• Wall Street sentiment has turned more positive with multiple upgrades (including UBS, BMO, KeyCorp) and an average rating of "Buy" and an average target of $37.00 (UBS target $43.00).
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.08 (annualized $0.32, yield 0.8%), while director E. Stanley Oneal sold 143,564 shares (a 49.27% reduction); insiders own 6.20% and institutions own 92.32%.

Element Solutions Inc. (NYSE:ESI - Get Free Report)'s share price shot up 9.5% on Wednesday following a stronger than expected earnings report. The stock traded as high as $43.71 and last traded at $42.4710. 938,713 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 66% from the average session volume of 2,780,659 shares. The stock had previously closed at $38.78.

The company reported $0.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.38 by $0.03. Element Solutions had a return on equity of 13.79% and a net margin of 7.48%.The firm had revenue of $840.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $764.16 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.34 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 41.5% compared to the same quarter last year.

Element Solutions Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 2nd were paid a dividend of $0.08 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 2nd. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.8%. Element Solutions's dividend payout ratio is 40.51%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ESI has been the topic of several recent research reports. Freedom Capital raised shares of Element Solutions to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Element Solutions from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, April 20th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on Element Solutions from $35.00 to $37.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. KeyCorp boosted their target price on Element Solutions from $34.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price target on Element Solutions from $34.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, February 19th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $37.00.

Insider Transactions at Element Solutions

In other Element Solutions news, Director E Stanley Oneal sold 143,564 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.52, for a total transaction of $5,099,393.28. Following the transaction, the director owned 147,832 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,250,992.64. This trade represents a 49.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 6.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Element Solutions

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Element Solutions in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Element Solutions by 154.8% during the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,116 shares of the company's stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 678 shares during the period. Community Bank N.A. purchased a new position in shares of Element Solutions during the third quarter worth about $33,000. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd acquired a new position in Element Solutions in the 3rd quarter valued at about $41,000. Finally, Johnson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in Element Solutions in the 3rd quarter valued at about $47,000. 92.32% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Element Solutions Trading Up 10.0%

The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $34.98 and a 200 day simple moving average of $29.92. The company has a current ratio of 3.68, a quick ratio of 3.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.39 billion, a PE ratio of 54.18, a P/E/G ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.23.

About Element Solutions

Element Solutions Inc is a global specialty chemicals company that develops and supplies highly engineered chemistries to performance-driven end markets. The company's solutions serve customers across the electronics, energy, transportation, consumer and industrial sectors, with a particular emphasis on electronics chemicals, metal plating, and industrial coatings additives.

In the electronics market, Element Solutions provides a range of plating and surface-treatment chemistries used in the manufacture of printed circuit boards, semiconductor devices, and advanced display technologies.

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