American Century Companies Inc. Purchases 210,990 Shares of Orion S.A. (NYSE:OEC)

American Century Companies Inc. lifted its position in shares of Orion S.A. (NYSE:OEC) by 18.6% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,347,138 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after purchasing an additional 210,990 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. owned 2.31% of Orion worth $29,556,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Orion by 6.4% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 899,341 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $24,939,000 after buying an additional 53,720 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in Orion by 4.6% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,729,261 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $47,954,000 after acquiring an additional 76,480 shares during the period. Chesapeake Capital Corp IL bought a new stake in Orion during the fourth quarter worth $933,000. Isthmus Partners LLC boosted its position in Orion by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Isthmus Partners LLC now owns 113,541 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $3,148,000 after purchasing an additional 2,624 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jade Capital Advisors LLC grew its stake in Orion by 420.4% in the 4th quarter. Jade Capital Advisors LLC now owns 328,041 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $9,097,000 after purchasing an additional 265,000 shares during the period. 94.33% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on OEC shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Orion from $24.00 to $20.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. StockNews.com cut shares of Orion from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, August 9th.

Insider Activity at Orion

In other Orion news, CEO Corning F. Painter acquired 20,000 shares of Orion stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 7th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $17.48 per share, for a total transaction of $349,600.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 948,776 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,584,604.48. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Corning F. Painter bought 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 7th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $17.48 per share, for a total transaction of $349,600.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 948,776 shares in the company, valued at $16,584,604.48. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Corning F. Painter purchased 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 22nd. The shares were bought at an average price of $17.69 per share, for a total transaction of $176,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 958,776 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,960,747.44. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have acquired 47,500 shares of company stock worth $845,225. 6.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Orion Stock Down 1.8 %

Shares of NYSE OEC opened at $16.89 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.31, a current ratio of 1.39 and a quick ratio of 0.80. The stock has a market capitalization of $984.82 million, a PE ratio of 11.41 and a beta of 1.47. Orion S.A. has a one year low of $15.54 and a one year high of $28.48. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $19.34 and its 200-day moving average price is $22.08.

Orion (NYSE:OEC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.41 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.59 by ($0.18). The business had revenue of $477.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $491.14 million. Orion had a net margin of 4.09% and a return on equity of 19.21%. Orion’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.53 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Orion S.A. will post 1.85 EPS for the current year.

About Orion

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.