Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Decreases Stock Holdings in Orion S.A. (NYSE:OEC)

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans cut its holdings in Orion S.A. (NYSE:OEC) by 42.5% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 43,602 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 32,265 shares during the quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans’ holdings in Orion were worth $688,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio bought a new position in Orion during the third quarter valued at $27,000. Point72 DIFC Ltd raised its position in shares of Orion by 1,578.7% during the 3rd quarter. Point72 DIFC Ltd now owns 4,415 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $79,000 after buying an additional 4,152 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Orion by 1,112.9% in the 3rd quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. now owns 8,624 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $154,000 after acquiring an additional 7,913 shares during the last quarter. Paloma Partners Management Co purchased a new position in Orion in the third quarter worth about $190,000. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Orion in the third quarter worth about $280,000. Institutional investors own 94.33% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Orion from $21.00 to $18.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 21st. UBS Group decreased their price target on Orion from $23.00 to $22.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 20th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Orion

In related news, VP Carlos Quinones bought 3,300 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $13.07 per share, with a total value of $43,131.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the vice president now owns 79,702 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,041,705.14. This trade represents a 4.32 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 2.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Orion Price Performance

OEC stock opened at $12.59 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $713.27 million, a PE ratio of 16.79 and a beta of 1.25. Orion S.A. has a 12 month low of $12.08 and a 12 month high of $26.05. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $13.86 and a 200 day moving average price of $15.63. The company has a current ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42.

Orion (NYSE:OEC) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.25 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $434.20 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $437.03 million. Orion had a return on equity of 20.94% and a net margin of 2.35%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Orion S.A. will post 1.73 earnings per share for the current year.

Orion Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 4th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 13th will be given a $0.0207 dividend. This represents a $0.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.66%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 13th. Orion’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 10.67%.

Orion Company Profile

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.