Huntsman (NYSE:HUN) Rating Increased to Sell at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen upgraded Huntsman (HUN) from a "strong sell" to a "sell," signaling a slight improvement but still a negative recommendation.
• MarketBeat shows a consensus rating of "Reduce" with an average price target of $12.41, based on 1 Strong Buy, 1 Buy, 8 Hold and 4 Sell analyst ratings.
• Huntsman missed quarterly EPS estimates (reported ($0.37) vs. ($0.29) expected), posted revenue of $1.36B (down 6.7% YoY), and the stock trades near $13.69 with a negative P/E and ~$2.38B market cap.

Huntsman (NYSE:HUN - Get Free Report) was upgraded by research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "strong sell" rating to a "sell" rating in a note issued to investors on Saturday.

Other equities analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Huntsman from $13.00 to $14.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. KeyCorp restated a "sector weight" rating on shares of Huntsman in a report on Monday, December 22nd. Alembic Global Advisors upgraded shares of Huntsman from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Huntsman from $12.00 to $14.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. Finally, Mizuho increased their target price on shares of Huntsman from $8.00 to $9.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Huntsman presently has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and an average target price of $12.41.

Huntsman Price Performance

Shares of Huntsman stock opened at $13.69 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $12.60 and a 200-day simple moving average of $10.70. The company has a current ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. Huntsman has a 1-year low of $7.30 and a 1-year high of $14.38. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -8.34 and a beta of 0.59.

Huntsman (NYSE:HUN - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 17th. The basic materials company reported ($0.37) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.29) by ($0.08). Huntsman had a negative return on equity of 3.97% and a negative net margin of 5.00%.The firm had revenue of $1.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.34 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted ($0.25) earnings per share. Huntsman's quarterly revenue was down 6.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Huntsman will post 0.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Huntsman

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. increased its holdings in Huntsman by 8.6% in the 4th quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 13,863 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $139,000 after buying an additional 1,099 shares during the period. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. increased its holdings in Huntsman by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 44,574 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $446,000 after buying an additional 1,225 shares during the period. Guggenheim Capital LLC increased its holdings in Huntsman by 2.9% in the 4th quarter. Guggenheim Capital LLC now owns 43,022 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $430,000 after buying an additional 1,226 shares during the period. Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Huntsman by 8.9% in the 4th quarter. Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 16,335 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $163,000 after buying an additional 1,332 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its holdings in Huntsman by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 477,566 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $4,776,000 after buying an additional 1,372 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 84.81% of the company's stock.

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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