Millennium Management LLC Sells 241,384 Shares of Element Solutions Inc (NYSE:ESI)

Millennium Management LLC reduced its stake in shares of Element Solutions Inc (NYSE:ESI - Free Report) by 70.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 101,672 shares of the company's stock after selling 241,384 shares during the quarter. Millennium Management LLC's holdings in Element Solutions were worth $2,586,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ESI. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in Element Solutions by 80.4% during the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,921,021 shares of the company's stock worth $74,282,000 after acquiring an additional 1,301,602 shares during the period. FIL Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Element Solutions in the fourth quarter valued at $29,818,000. London Co. of Virginia acquired a new stake in shares of Element Solutions in the fourth quarter valued at $29,800,000. Boston Partners purchased a new stake in shares of Element Solutions during the fourth quarter valued at $24,169,000. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Element Solutions during the fourth quarter valued at $13,573,000. 92.32% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Element Solutions Stock Up 0.9%

ESI stock traded up $0.20 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $21.61. The stock had a trading volume of 1,408,431 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,963,675. The company has a current ratio of 3.34, a quick ratio of 2.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76. Element Solutions Inc has a 1-year low of $16.77 and a 1-year high of $29.78. The company has a fifty day moving average of $20.53 and a 200 day moving average of $24.22. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.19, a PEG ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 1.24.

Element Solutions (NYSE:ESI - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The company reported $0.34 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.33 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $593.70 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $576.73 million. Element Solutions had a return on equity of 14.68% and a net margin of 9.94%. The business's revenue was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.34 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Element Solutions Inc will post 1.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Element Solutions Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Monday, June 2nd will be paid a dividend of $0.08 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 2nd. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.48%. Element Solutions's payout ratio is 26.89%.

Insider Activity at Element Solutions

In other Element Solutions news, Director Martin E. Franklin sold 2,000,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 in the company, valued at approximately $2,847,510. This trade represents a 94.83% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 6.90% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ESI has been the subject of several analyst reports. KeyCorp reduced their target price on Element Solutions from $29.00 to $28.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 14th. Bank of America raised Element Solutions from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and reduced their target price for the company from $29.00 to $24.00 in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Element Solutions from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price target on Element Solutions from $30.00 to $24.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Finally, Barclays dropped their price target 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. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $26.38.

Element Solutions Profile

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.