Element Solutions (NYSE:ESI) Sets New 1-Year Low – Here’s What Happened

Shares of Element Solutions Inc (NYSE:ESI) hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $22.93 and last traded at $23.60, with a volume of 6807221 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $24.71.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ESI has been the topic of several research reports. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of Element Solutions from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Bank of America reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $28.00 price target (down previously from $32.00) on shares of Element Solutions in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. StockNews.com cut Element Solutions from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Truist Financial started coverage on Element Solutions in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $28.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Barclays reduced their price target on Element Solutions from $32.00 to $30.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $30.14.

Element Solutions Stock Down 4.5 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 3.34 and a quick ratio of 2.77. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $25.73 and a 200 day moving average of $26.31. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.14, a PEG ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 1.29.

Element Solutions (NYSE:ESI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 18th. The company reported $0.35 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.35. The company had revenue of $624.20 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $598.24 million. Element Solutions had a return on equity of 14.68% and a net margin of 9.94%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Element Solutions Inc will post 1.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Element Solutions Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were given a $0.08 dividend. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.36%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. Element Solutions’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 31.37%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Martin E. Franklin sold 2,000,000 shares of Element Solutions stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.10, for a total transaction of $52,200,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 109,100 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,847,510. The trade was a 94.83 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 7.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Element Solutions

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC increased its holdings in shares of Element Solutions by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 23,979 shares of the company’s stock valued at $610,000 after purchasing an additional 423 shares during the last quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. grew its stake in Element Solutions by 4.0% in the 4th quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 11,297 shares of the company’s stock valued at $287,000 after buying an additional 430 shares during the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System grew its stake in Element Solutions by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 66,761 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,698,000 after buying an additional 545 shares during the last quarter. Equitable Trust Co. raised its holdings in Element Solutions by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Equitable Trust Co. now owns 34,103 shares of the company’s stock valued at $867,000 after acquiring an additional 576 shares during the period. Finally, Treasurer of the State of North Carolina lifted its position in Element Solutions by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 98,398 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,502,000 after acquiring an additional 610 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.32% of the company’s stock.

About Element Solutions

Element Solutions Inc operates as a specialty chemicals company in the United States, China, and internationally. The company operates in two segments, Electronics, and Industrial & Specialty. The Electronics segment researches, formulates, and sells specialty chemicals and materials for various types of electronics hardware products.