KBC Group NV Sells 21,843 Shares of Eastman Chemical Company $EMN

Key Points

• KBC Group NV trimmed its stake in Eastman Chemical by 70.1%, selling 21,843 shares and leaving 9,301 shares valued at about $594,000.
• Eastman missed Q4 earnings with EPS of $0.75 (vs. $0.76 est.) and reported revenue down 12.1% year-over-year to $1.97 billion.
• The stock carries a 4.6% dividend yield ($3.36 annual), a P/E of 18.01 and a MarketBeat consensus rating of "Hold" with an average target price of $80.00.

KBC Group NV trimmed its stake in shares of Eastman Chemical Company (NYSE:EMN - Free Report) by 70.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 9,301 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 21,843 shares during the quarter. KBC Group NV's holdings in Eastman Chemical were worth $594,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. boosted its position in Eastman Chemical by 70.0% during the fourth quarter. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. now owns 425 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 175 shares during the period. Advisors Management Group Inc. ADV increased its position in Eastman Chemical by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. Advisors Management Group Inc. ADV now owns 12,327 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $777,000 after buying an additional 181 shares during the period. NewEdge Advisors LLC increased its position in Eastman Chemical by 2.6% during the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 7,310 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $644,000 after buying an additional 183 shares during the period. Apollon Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Eastman Chemical by 4.3% during the 4th quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,467 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $285,000 after buying an additional 184 shares during the period. Finally, Provident Investment Management Inc. increased its position in Eastman Chemical by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. Provident Investment Management Inc. now owns 9,210 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $581,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the period. 83.65% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Eastman Chemical Stock Performance

NYSE:EMN opened at $73.65 on Tuesday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $73.85 and a 200-day moving average price of $67.52. The company has a market cap of $8.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.01, a PEG ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a current ratio of 1.37. Eastman Chemical Company has a fifty-two week low of $56.11 and a fifty-two week high of $84.18.

Eastman Chemical (NYSE:EMN - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The basic materials company reported $0.75 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.76 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $1.97 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.03 billion. Eastman Chemical had a net margin of 5.42% and a return on equity of 10.57%. The business's revenue was down 12.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.87 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Eastman Chemical Company will post 5.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Eastman Chemical Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 8th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 13th were issued a $0.84 dividend. This represents a $3.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 13th. Eastman Chemical's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 82.15%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have weighed in on EMN shares. UBS Group increased their price objective on Eastman Chemical from $80.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Eastman Chemical from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a "sector perform" rating and set a $79.00 target price on shares of Eastman Chemical in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Bank of America increased their target price on shares of Eastman Chemical from $74.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, Evercore set a $75.00 target price on shares of Eastman Chemical in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Eastman Chemical presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $80.00.

About Eastman Chemical

Eastman Chemical Company NYSE: EMN is a global specialty materials company that develops, manufactures and markets a broad range of advanced materials, chemicals and fibers. Its product portfolio spans performance additives, functional products, and engineered plastics designed to enhance the durability, appearance and performance of end products across diverse industries.

The company's main business activities include the production of specialty chemicals used in adhesives, coatings, building materials and consumer care applications, as well as high-performance plastics for packaging, automotive and electronics markets.

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