Morgan Stanley Boosts Huntsman (NYSE:HUN) Price Target to $15.00

Key Points

• Morgan Stanley raised its price target on Huntsman from $11 to $15.00 and kept an "equal weight" rating, implying roughly a 2.15% upside from the prior close.
• Analyst views are mixed: several firms (UBS, JPMorgan) have recently lifted targets into the low-$14s while ratings span from Strong Buy to Sell, with a MarketBeat consensus target of $13 and an average rating of "Reduce".
• Huntsman recently traded at $14.69 after reporting Q1 EPS of ($0.20) (beating estimates) and revenue of $1.42B; the stock has a 1-year range of $7.30–$15.90. Institutional ownership is high, at about 84.81%.

Huntsman (NYSE:HUN - Get Free Report) had its target price raised by equities research analysts at Morgan Stanley from $11.00 to $15.00 in a note issued to investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an "equal weight" rating on the basic materials company's stock. Morgan Stanley's price target indicates a potential upside of 2.15% from the stock's previous close.

HUN has been the topic of a number of other research reports. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Huntsman from $12.00 to $14.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "sell (d)" rating on shares of Huntsman in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Mizuho boosted their target price on Huntsman from $8.00 to $9.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded Huntsman from an "overweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and upped their price objective for the company from $11.00 to $14.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. Finally, Alembic Global Advisors raised Huntsman from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $13.00.

Huntsman Price Performance

NYSE HUN traded up $0.47 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $14.69. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,473,416 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,318,697. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $12.76 and its 200-day moving average price is $11.19. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. Huntsman has a 1 year low of $7.30 and a 1 year high of $15.90. The company has a market capitalization of $2.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -7.64 and a beta of 0.62.

Huntsman (NYSE:HUN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The basic materials company reported ($0.20) EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.23) by $0.03. Huntsman had a negative return on equity of 4.56% and a negative net margin of 5.83%.The company had revenue of $1.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.39 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned ($0.11) EPS. The firm's revenue was up .7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Huntsman will post -0.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Huntsman

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Huntsman by 9.3% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 17,880,912 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $178,809,000 after purchasing an additional 1,523,590 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Huntsman by 29.8% during the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 12,062,972 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $106,878,000 after purchasing an additional 2,772,563 shares during the last quarter. UBS Group AG lifted its stake in shares of Huntsman by 83.5% during the 3rd quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 7,364,206 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $66,131,000 after purchasing an additional 3,351,265 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Huntsman by 5.1% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 6,969,687 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $69,697,000 after purchasing an additional 336,966 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Huntsman by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 6,862,912 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $68,629,000 after purchasing an additional 199,668 shares during the last quarter. 84.81% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Huntsman Company Profile

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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