Ironwood Investment Management LLC Boosts Stake in Koppers Holdings Inc. (NYSE:KOP)

Ironwood Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Koppers Holdings Inc. (NYSE:KOP) by 8.9% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 85,916 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after acquiring an additional 7,000 shares during the quarter. Koppers accounts for approximately 1.4% of Ironwood Investment Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 15th largest position. Ironwood Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Koppers were worth $2,784,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Pzena Investment Management LLC grew its position in Koppers by 18.0% during the fourth quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 908,772 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $29,444,000 after acquiring an additional 138,603 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Koppers by 20.7% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 568,787 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $20,778,000 after purchasing an additional 97,586 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Koppers by 5.1% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 424,871 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $15,521,000 after purchasing an additional 20,586 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its stake in Koppers by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 201,557 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $6,530,000 after purchasing an additional 1,596 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hennessy Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in Koppers by 6.8% in the fourth quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. now owns 184,500 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $5,978,000 after purchasing an additional 11,800 shares during the last quarter. 92.75% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Koppers Price Performance

Shares of Koppers stock opened at $30.02 on Friday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $30.33 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $34.04. Koppers Holdings Inc. has a 12-month low of $27.00 and a 12-month high of $56.96. The firm has a market cap of $615.07 million, a PE ratio of 8.53 and a beta of 1.74. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 2.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.83.

Koppers (NYSE:KOP) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 27th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.95 by ($0.18). The business had revenue of $477.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $497.00 million. Koppers had a return on equity of 16.71% and a net margin of 3.55%. As a group, equities analysts expect that Koppers Holdings Inc. will post 4.24 EPS for the current year.

Koppers declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback plan on Thursday, February 27th that authorizes the company to buyback $100.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the specialty chemicals company to purchase up to 16.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Koppers Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 24th. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th will be issued a dividend of $0.08 per share. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.07%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. This is an increase from Koppers’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.07. Koppers’s dividend payout ratio is currently 13.17%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently commented on KOP shares. Barrington Research reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $64.00 price objective on shares of Koppers in a report on Monday, February 24th. StockNews.com raised Koppers from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday.

Koppers Company Profile

Koppers Holdings Inc provides treated wood products, wood preservation chemicals, and carbon compounds in the United States, Australasia, Europe, and internationally. The company operates through Railroad and Utility Products and Services (RUPS), Performance Chemicals (PC), and Carbon Materials and Chemicals (CMC) segments.