Eastman Chemical (NYSE:EMN) Upgraded to Buy by Jefferies Financial Group

Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Eastman Chemical (NYSE:EMN - Free Report) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note issued to investors on Monday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Jefferies Financial Group currently has $125.00 target price on the basic materials company's stock, up from their prior target price of $102.00.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Mizuho raised their target price on shares of Eastman Chemical from $91.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research report on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Eastman Chemical from $89.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an equal weight rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Eastman Chemical from $89.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a sector perform rating in a research report on Friday, April 19th. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Eastman Chemical from $95.00 to $114.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Eastman Chemical from $91.00 to $93.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research report on Friday, February 2nd. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $101.41.

Eastman Chemical Price Performance

NYSE:EMN traded up $1.78 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $97.34. 1,308,256 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,094,609. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a current ratio of 1.35. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $93.98 and its 200 day simple moving average is $86.56. Eastman Chemical has a 1 year low of $68.89 and a 1 year high of $102.71. The company has a market cap of $11.45 billion, a PE ratio of 12.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 1.54.

Eastman Chemical (NYSE:EMN - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The basic materials company reported $1.61 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.41 by $0.20. The firm had revenue of $2.31 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.29 billion. Eastman Chemical had a net margin of 10.16% and a return on equity of 13.95%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.63 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Eastman Chemical will post 7.71 EPS for the current year.

Eastman Chemical Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 5th. Investors of record on Friday, March 15th were issued a $0.81 dividend. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.33%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 14th. Eastman Chemical's payout ratio is currently 41.75%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Eastman Chemical news, SVP Adrian James Holt sold 4,735 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $87.75, for a total transaction of $415,496.25. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 2.28% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Eastman Chemical

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. First Command Advisory Services Inc. bought a new stake in Eastman Chemical during the third quarter worth approximately $26,000. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Eastman Chemical in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Eastman Chemical in the first quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Sound Income Strategies LLC boosted its position in shares of Eastman Chemical by 213.8% in the fourth quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 408 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 278 shares during the period. Finally, Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of Eastman Chemical in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.65% of the company's stock.

Eastman Chemical Company Profile

Eastman Chemical Company operates as a specialty materials company in the United States, China, and internationally. The company's Additives & Functional Products segment offers amine derivative-based building blocks, intermediates for surfactants, metam-based soil fumigants, and organic acid-based solutions; specialty coalescent and solvents, paint additives, and specialty polymers; and heat transfer and aviation fluids.