Quaker Houghton $KWR Shares Sold by Vanguard Group Inc.

Key Points

• Vanguard Group Inc. reduced its Quaker Houghton stake by 1.4% in the fourth quarter, selling 22,218 shares. The fund still owned 1.6 million shares, or about 9.21% of the company, worth roughly $219.4 million.
• Quaker Houghton reported fiscal Q1/quarterly earnings of $1.63 per share, slightly below analyst expectations of $1.66, but revenue came in above estimates at $480.5 million and rose 8.5% year over year.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed: Seaport upgraded the stock to buy, while others cut ratings or targets, leaving the consensus rating at Hold with an average price target of $166.

Vanguard Group Inc. trimmed its position in Quaker Houghton (NYSE:KWR - Free Report) by 1.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,597,568 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after selling 22,218 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned about 9.21% of Quaker Houghton worth $219,362,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Quaker Houghton by 1,897.7% in the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 321,637 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $42,376,000 after buying an additional 305,537 shares during the last quarter. Cramer Rosenthal Mcglynn LLC acquired a new stake in Quaker Houghton during the 3rd quarter worth $5,035,000. New York State Common Retirement Fund boosted its stake in Quaker Houghton by 10.4% during the 3rd quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 87,777 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $11,565,000 after purchasing an additional 8,271 shares during the last quarter. Dean Capital Management boosted its stake in Quaker Houghton by 163.4% during the 3rd quarter. Dean Capital Management now owns 31,349 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $4,130,000 after purchasing an additional 19,446 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Royce & Associates LP boosted its stake in Quaker Houghton by 3.2% during the 3rd quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 633,886 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $83,514,000 after purchasing an additional 19,788 shares during the last quarter. 77.46% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on KWR shares. Seaport Research Partners raised shares of Quaker Houghton from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $175.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 17th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Quaker Houghton from a "sell (d)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Quaker Houghton from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, April 12th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their target price on Quaker Houghton from $203.00 to $175.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 6th. Finally, Zacks Research cut Quaker Houghton from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $166.00.

Quaker Houghton Trading Up 3.2%

Shares of KWR stock opened at $147.50 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.45, a quick ratio of 1.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. Quaker Houghton has a twelve month low of $102.45 and a twelve month high of $183.01. The company's 50-day moving average price is $131.05 and its 200-day moving average price is $141.12. The stock has a market cap of $2.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 526.79, a PEG ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 1.42.

Quaker Houghton (NYSE:KWR - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.66 by ($0.03). Quaker Houghton had a return on equity of 9.03% and a net margin of 0.22%.The firm had revenue of $480.48 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $463.70 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.58 earnings per share. Quaker Houghton's revenue for the quarter was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Quaker Houghton will post 7.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Quaker Houghton Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 16th were issued a $0.508 dividend. This represents a $2.03 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 16th. Quaker Houghton's payout ratio is presently 725.00%.

About Quaker Houghton

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding KWR? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Quaker Houghton (NYSE:KWR - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.