First Wilshire Securities Management Inc. Has $10.11 Million Stock Holdings in Huntsman Corporation $HUN

Key Points

• First Wilshire Securities Management reduced its Huntsman stake by 10.4% in the fourth quarter, though it still held about 1.01 million shares worth roughly $10.11 million.
• Huntsman’s latest quarter showed a modest beat on expectations, with EPS of -$0.20 versus the expected -$0.23 and revenue of $1.42 billion above estimates. Revenue rose 0.7% year over year, but profitability remained negative.
• Analysts remain cautious overall: the stock carries an average rating of “Reduce” with a consensus price target of $13.17, even as Huntsman recently traded higher and announced a quarterly dividend of $0.0875 per share.

First Wilshire Securities Management Inc. cut its holdings in Huntsman Corporation (NYSE:HUN - Free Report) by 10.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,010,970 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 117,580 shares during the quarter. Huntsman comprises approximately 2.5% of First Wilshire Securities Management Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 13th largest position. First Wilshire Securities Management Inc. owned about 0.58% of Huntsman worth $10,110,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in HUN. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Huntsman by 8.6% in the fourth quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 13,863 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $139,000 after buying an additional 1,099 shares during the last quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Huntsman by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 44,574 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $446,000 after buying an additional 1,225 shares during the last quarter. Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Huntsman by 8.9% in the fourth quarter. Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 16,335 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $163,000 after buying an additional 1,332 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its stake in shares of Huntsman by 0.3% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 599,296 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $9,463,000 after buying an additional 1,581 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AMG National Trust Bank lifted its stake in shares of Huntsman by 1.1% in the third quarter. AMG National Trust Bank now owns 162,513 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $1,459,000 after buying an additional 1,769 shares during the last quarter. 84.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on HUN. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Huntsman from $14.00 to $16.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Huntsman from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 9th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Huntsman from $14.00 to $15.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a "sell" rating and issued a $13.00 price objective on shares of Huntsman in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a "hold" rating and issued a $15.00 price objective on shares of Huntsman in a research note on Tuesday, May 19th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Reduce" and a consensus price target of $13.17.

Huntsman Trading Up 5.9%

Shares of Huntsman stock opened at $15.07 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.64 billion, a PE ratio of -7.85 and a beta of 0.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 1.27 and a quick ratio of 0.75. The company's fifty day moving average price is $14.10 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $12.41. Huntsman Corporation has a 52-week low of $7.30 and a 52-week high of $15.90.

Huntsman (NYSE:HUN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The basic materials company reported ($0.20) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.23) by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $1.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.39 billion. Huntsman had a negative net margin of 5.83% and a negative return on equity of 4.60%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up .7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted ($0.11) EPS. On average, analysts expect that Huntsman Corporation will post -0.25 EPS for the current year.

Huntsman Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be issued a $0.0875 dividend. This represents a $0.35 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 15th. Huntsman's payout ratio is -18.23%.

About Huntsman

Huntsman Corporation is a global manufacturer and marketer of specialty chemicals with headquarters in The Woodlands, Texas. Founded in 1970 by entrepreneur Jon Huntsman Sr., the company has grown through strategic acquisitions and organic expansion to establish a broad portfolio of products serving diverse end markets. Huntsman maintains a presence in more than 30 countries, operating manufacturing facilities across North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, Latin America and the Middle East.

The company organizes its operations into several core business segments, including Polyurethanes, Performance Products, Advanced Materials, and Textile Effects.

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