Citigroup Downgrades Olin (NYSE:OLN) to Neutral

Key Points

• Citigroup has reiterated Olin's stock rating as "neutral" with a price target of $25.00, indicating a potential downside of 2.48% from its previous close.
• Analysts from various firms have recently lowered their price targets for Olin, with an average consensus target price of $25.57 and a majority rating it as "Hold."
• Olin reported disappointing earnings for the last quarter, with an EPS of $0.05, missing the consensus estimate of $0.09, despite revenues increasing by 7% year-over-year.

Olin (NYSE:OLN - Get Free Report) was downgraded by analysts at Citigroup from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report issued on Thursday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. They currently have a $25.00 target price on the specialty chemicals company's stock. Citigroup's price objective indicates a potential downside of 2.48% from the stock's current price.

A number of other research analysts also recently commented on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price objective on shares of Olin from $25.00 to $23.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Olin from $22.00 to $21.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Fermium Researc raised shares of Olin to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, September 25th. Mizuho decreased their price objective on shares of Olin from $24.00 to $23.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 29th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Olin from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $25.57.

Olin Stock Up 2.6%

Olin stock opened at $25.64 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $2.94 billion, a P/E ratio of -213.63 and a beta of 1.68. Olin has a 1-year low of $17.66 and a 1-year high of $48.48. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $22.55 and a 200 day simple moving average of $21.75. The company has a current ratio of 1.48, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50.

Olin (NYSE:OLN - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, July 28th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.05 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.09 by ($0.04). The business had revenue of $1.76 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.68 billion. Olin had a negative net margin of 0.21% and a negative return on equity of 0.13%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 7.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.62 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Olin will post 1.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Olin news, VP Teresa M. Vermillion sold 6,000 shares of Olin stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.11, for a total value of $126,660.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 17,199 shares in the company, valued at $363,070.89. The trade was a 25.86% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 1.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Olin

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Fifth Third Bancorp raised its stake in Olin by 160.5% in the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,206 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 743 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Olin in the 1st quarter worth about $31,000. Evelyn Partners Investment Management LLP raised its stake in Olin by 6,360.0% in the 2nd quarter. Evelyn Partners Investment Management LLP now owns 1,615 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 1,590 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. acquired a new stake in Olin in the 1st quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. increased its holdings in Olin by 134.9% in the 2nd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 1,736 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 997 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.67% of the company's stock.

About Olin

Olin Corporation manufactures and distributes chemical products in the United States, Europe, Asia Pacific, Latin America, and Canada. It operates through three segments: Chlor Alkali Products and Vinyls; Epoxy; and Winchester. The Chlor Alkali Products and Vinyls segment offers chlorine and caustic soda, ethylene dichloride and vinyl chloride monomers, methyl chloride, methylene chloride, chloroform, carbon tetrachloride, perchloroethylene, hydrochloric acid, hydrogen, bleach products, potassium hydroxide, and chlorinated organics intermediates and solvents.