Quaker Houghton (NYSE:KWR) Shares Break Below 200 Day Moving Average on Analyst Downgrade

Key Points

• Quaker Houghton shares fell below their 200-day moving average, reaching $147.62 after RBC cut its price target from $202 to $192, though RBC maintained an outperform rating.
• Analyst sentiment remains generally positive, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and average target price of $186; however, several firms recently downgraded the stock to hold.
• The company reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $2.39 versus the $2.10 estimate and revenue up 10.3% year over year to $544.55 million. Institutional investors own approximately 77.46% of the shares.

Quaker Houghton (NYSE:KWR - Get Free Report)'s share price crossed below its 200-day moving average during trading on Monday after Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price target on the stock from $202.00 to $192.00. The stock has a 200-day moving average of $150.41 and traded as low as $147.62. Royal Bank Of Canada currently has an outperform rating on the stock. Quaker Houghton shares last traded at $148.1650, with a volume of 233,481 shares changing hands.

Other equities research analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Quaker Houghton from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on shares of Quaker Houghton from $190.00 to $192.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their target price on shares of Quaker Houghton from $165.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 25th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Quaker Houghton in a report on Friday. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded Quaker Houghton from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, October 26th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $186.00.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director William Osborne sold 600 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $168.31, for a total value of $100,986.00. Following the sale, the director owned 616 shares of the company's stock, valued at $103,678.96. The trade was a 49.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 1.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Quaker Houghton

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in shares of Quaker Houghton in the 2nd quarter valued at about $335,290,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in Quaker Houghton by 5.4% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 750,789 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $93,271,000 after acquiring an additional 38,261 shares in the last quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Quaker Houghton during the second quarter valued at approximately $66,810,000. Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new position in Quaker Houghton during the second quarter valued at approximately $37,045,000. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its position in Quaker Houghton by 1.7% during the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 199,349 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $24,766,000 after purchasing an additional 3,354 shares during the last quarter. 77.46% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Quaker Houghton Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 1.70, a current ratio of 2.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $158.47 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $150.41. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.51, a P/E/G ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 1.40.

Quaker Houghton (NYSE:KWR - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 29th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.39 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.10 by $0.29. Quaker Houghton had a return on equity of 9.55% and a net margin of 4.94%. The firm had revenue of $544.55 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $522.88 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.08 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 10.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Quaker Houghton will post 7.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Quaker Houghton Company Profile

Quaker Houghton NYSE: KWR is a global provider of industrial process fluids and chemical products used in manufacturing and other heavy industries. The company develops, produces and supplies fluids, lubricants, cleaners, corrosion preventives and specialty chemical solutions designed to support metalworking, forming, treating and finishing processes.

Its products are used by customers in industries including steel, aluminum, automotive, aerospace, mining, machinery, metal packaging and other general manufacturing markets.

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