Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. Sells 14,500 Shares of Owens Corning (NYSE:OC)

Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. lowered its stake in Owens Corning (NYSE:OC) by 55.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 11,600 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 14,500 shares during the period. Polar Asset Management Partners Inc.’s holdings in Owens Corning were worth $2,048,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Cetera Investment Advisers raised its holdings in Owens Corning by 196.2% during the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 12,765 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $2,129,000 after buying an additional 8,456 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Owens Corning during the first quarter worth about $421,000. Park Avenue Securities LLC grew its stake in shares of Owens Corning by 111.9% in the second quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 5,524 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $960,000 after purchasing an additional 2,917 shares during the last quarter. Csenge Advisory Group bought a new stake in shares of Owens Corning in the second quarter worth about $219,000. Finally, QRG Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in Owens Corning by 19.7% during the 2nd quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 17,067 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $2,965,000 after purchasing an additional 2,811 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 88.40% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Marcio A. Sandri sold 3,051 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $176.50, for a total transaction of $538,501.50. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 57,079 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,074,443.50. This represents a 5.07 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.89% of the company’s stock.

Owens Corning Stock Performance

Owens Corning stock opened at $200.16 on Friday. Owens Corning has a twelve month low of $138.26 and a twelve month high of $214.53. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. The company has a market capitalization of $17.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.03, a PEG ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 1.42. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $188.00 and its 200 day moving average is $177.02.

Owens Corning (NYSE:OC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The construction company reported $4.38 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.05 by $0.33. The firm had revenue of $3.05 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.04 billion. Owens Corning had a return on equity of 25.82% and a net margin of 9.92%. The company’s revenue was up 22.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $4.15 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Owens Corning will post 15.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Owens Corning Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, January 6th will be paid a $0.69 dividend. This represents a $2.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.38%. This is an increase from Owens Corning’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. Owens Corning’s dividend payout ratio is currently 20.43%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. StockNews.com upgraded Owens Corning from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 9th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Owens Corning from $197.00 to $218.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of Owens Corning from $189.00 to $196.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on shares of Owens Corning from $213.00 to $217.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Owens Corning from $175.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $192.62.

Owens Corning Profile

Owens Corning manufactures and sells building and construction materials in the United States, Europe, the Asia Pacific, and internationally. It operates in three segments: Roofing, Insulation, and Composites. The Roofing segment manufactures and sells laminate and strip asphalt roofing shingles, oxidized asphalt materials, and roofing components used in residential and commercial construction, and specialty applications.