Koppers (NYSE:KOP) Share Price Crosses Above 200 Day Moving Average - Should You Sell?

Koppers Holdings Inc. (NYSE:KOP - Get Free Report)'s stock price passed above its two hundred day moving average during trading on Wednesday . The stock has a two hundred day moving average of $29.69 and traded as high as $32.46. Koppers shares last traded at $31.62, with a volume of 107,123 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on KOP shares. Barrington Research restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $64.00 target price on shares of Koppers in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Koppers from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, March 22nd.

Koppers Stock Performance

The company has a market cap of $656.47 million, a P/E ratio of 28.28 and a beta of 1.50. The company's 50-day moving average is $29.48 and its two-hundred day moving average is $29.66. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 2.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.96.

Koppers (NYSE:KOP - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Friday, May 9th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.71 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.56 by $0.15. Koppers had a net margin of 1.24% and a return on equity of 17.41%. The firm had revenue of $456.50 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $488.00 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.62 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was down 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Koppers Holdings Inc. will post 4.24 EPS for the current year.

Koppers Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 30th were issued a dividend of $0.08 per share. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.98%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 30th. Koppers's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 27.59%.

Koppers announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback plan on Thursday, February 27th that permits the company to repurchase $100.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the specialty chemicals company to purchase up to 16.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Pzena Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in Koppers by 34.4% in the 1st quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 1,221,328 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $34,197,000 after acquiring an additional 312,556 shares during the last quarter. LSV Asset Management increased its stake in shares of Koppers by 19.9% in the first quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 758,661 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $21,243,000 after purchasing an additional 125,799 shares in the last quarter. Kennedy Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Koppers in the fourth quarter worth about $2,948,000. Kestrel Investment Management Corp bought a new stake in shares of Koppers in the first quarter valued at approximately $2,535,000. Finally, Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Koppers by 193.5% during the 4th quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 130,816 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $4,238,000 after buying an additional 86,246 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.75% of the company's stock.

About Koppers

Koppers Holdings Inc provides treated wood products, wood preservation chemicals, and carbon compounds in the United States, Australasia, Europe, and internationally. The company operates through Railroad and Utility Products and Services (RUPS), Performance Chemicals (PC), and Carbon Materials and Chemicals (CMC) segments.