Bank of America Corp DE Has $27.83 Million Holdings in Quaker Houghton $KWR

Key Points

• Bank of America increased its Quaker Houghton stake by 25.4% in the first quarter, bringing its holdings to 224,030 shares valued at approximately $27.83 million. Institutional investors collectively own 77.46% of the company.
• Analyst sentiment improved, with a consensus “Buy” rating and an average price target of $187.67. Truist Financial and Royal Bank of Canada raised their targets to $190 and $198, respectively.
• Quaker Houghton exceeded quarterly earnings expectations, reporting $2.19 EPS and $532.55 million in revenue, while revenue grew 10.2% year over year. The company also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.53 and authorized a $250 million share-buyback program.

Bank of America Corp DE lifted its holdings in Quaker Houghton (NYSE:KWR - Free Report) by 25.4% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 224,030 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after buying an additional 45,339 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE owned about 1.29% of Quaker Houghton worth $27,831,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of KWR. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Quaker Houghton by 114.3% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 23,139 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $2,860,000 after acquiring an additional 12,341 shares during the last quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC boosted its position in Quaker Houghton by 7.1% during the first quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 1,650 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $204,000 after purchasing an additional 109 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its stake in Quaker Houghton by 4.4% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 8,211 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $1,015,000 after purchasing an additional 345 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its position in Quaker Houghton by 29.2% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 95,751 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $11,836,000 after purchasing an additional 21,665 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC increased its position in Quaker Houghton by 44.4% in the 1st quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 9,873 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $1,220,000 after purchasing an additional 3,034 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.46% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

KWR has been the topic of several analyst reports. Truist Financial restated a "buy" rating and set a $190.00 price target (up from $172.00) on shares of Quaker Houghton in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Quaker Houghton from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Zacks Research raised shares of Quaker Houghton from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their target price on Quaker Houghton from $177.00 to $198.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Quaker Houghton from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $187.67.

Quaker Houghton Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:KWR opened at $170.65 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.94 billion, a PE ratio of 30.42, a PEG ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 1.40. 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 has a 1-year low of $112.18 and a 1-year high of $183.01. The business's 50 day moving average is $155.13 and its 200-day moving average is $146.65.

Quaker Houghton (NYSE:KWR - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.66 by $0.53. The firm had revenue of $532.55 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $504.63 million. Quaker Houghton had a net margin of 4.94% and a return on equity of 9.55%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 10.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.71 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Quaker Houghton will post 7.72 earnings per share for the current year.

Quaker Houghton Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 16th will be issued a $0.53 dividend. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 16th. This is a boost from Quaker Houghton's previous quarterly dividend of $0.51. Quaker Houghton's payout ratio is currently 36.19%.

Quaker Houghton announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, May 13th that permits the company to repurchase $250.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the specialty chemicals company to buy up to 10.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity at Quaker Houghton

In related news, Director William H. Osborne sold 600 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $168.31, for a total transaction of $100,986.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 616 shares in the company, valued at $103,678.96. This trade represents a 49.34% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Jeewat Bijlani sold 731 shares of the business's stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 6,748 shares in the company, valued at approximately $983,655.96. This represents a 9.77% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 1.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Quaker Houghton Company Profile

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.

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