Orion S.A. (NYSE:OEC) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

Key Points

• Orion S.A. experienced a 28.9% increase in short interest in August, bringing the total short interest to 896,500 shares, which constitutes approximately 1.7% of the company's stock.
• The company reported a miss in earnings for the last quarter, with earnings per share of $0.32, falling short of the consensus estimate of $0.36.
• Orion S.A. announced an interim dividend of $0.0207 per share, with a dividend yield of 80.0%, scheduled to be paid on January 20th to stockholders recorded by December 12th.

Orion S.A. (NYSE:OEC - Get Free Report) was the target of a significant growth in short interest during the month of August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totaling 896,500 shares, a growth of 28.9% from the August 15th total of 695,500 shares. Approximately 1.7% of the company's stock are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 578,500 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.5 days. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 578,500 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.5 days. Approximately 1.7% of the company's stock are sold short.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Orion

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in OEC. Pzena Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Orion by 37.5% in the 2nd quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 4,577,197 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $48,015,000 after buying an additional 1,248,295 shares in the last quarter. Harvey Partners LLC grew its position in Orion by 15.5% in the second quarter. Harvey Partners LLC now owns 2,424,995 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $25,438,000 after acquiring an additional 325,995 shares in the last quarter. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC bought a new stake in Orion during the first quarter worth approximately $4,019,000. CSM Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Orion during the second quarter valued at approximately $2,743,000. Finally, Invenomic Capital Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Orion in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $3,125,000. 94.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Orion Price Performance

NYSE:OEC traded down $0.23 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $8.62. 648,294 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 470,630. The company has a market cap of $484.01 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.93 and a beta of 1.05. Orion has a 1 year low of $8.57 and a 1 year high of $19.48. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $10.37 and a 200 day moving average price of $11.27. The company has a quick ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.46.

Orion (NYSE:OEC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.32 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.36 by ($0.04). Orion had a return on equity of 16.67% and a net margin of 0.82%.The business had revenue of $466.40 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $475.77 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.41 EPS. The business's revenue was down 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Orion will post 1.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Orion Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a interim dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, January 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 12th will be issued a $0.0207 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 80.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 12th. Orion's payout ratio is 29.63%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on OEC shares. Zacks Research raised Orion to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 12th. Mizuho restated an "underperform" rating and set a $9.00 target price on shares of Orion in a research note on Friday, September 12th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated an "underweight" rating and issued a $9.00 price target (down from $10.00) on shares of Orion in a research note on Monday, August 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and an average price target of $11.67.

About Orion

Orion SA, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the manufacture and sale of carbon black products. It operates in two segments, Specialty Carbon Black and Rubber Carbon Black. The company offers post-treated specialty carbon black grades for coatings and printing applications; high purity carbon black grades for the fiber industry; and conductive carbon black grades for batteries, polymers, and coatings.

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