Element Solutions’ (ESI) Neutral Rating Reiterated at Bank of America

Bank of America restated their neutral rating on shares of Element Solutions (NYSE:ESI) in a report released on Tuesday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The firm currently has a $28.00 target price on the stock, down from their previous target price of $32.00.

Several other research analysts have also recently issued reports on ESI. StockNews.com cut Element Solutions from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Element Solutions from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Wolfe Research upgraded Element Solutions from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on shares of Element Solutions from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, December 16th. Finally, Seaport Res Ptn raised Element Solutions to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Element Solutions has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $30.83.

Element Solutions Stock Performance

NYSE:ESI opened at $25.75 on Tuesday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $26.93 and its 200-day simple moving average is $26.52. The company has a quick ratio of 2.77, a current ratio of 3.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78. The stock has a market cap of $6.24 billion, a PE ratio of 23.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 1.30. Element Solutions has a fifty-two week low of $21.42 and a fifty-two week high of $29.78.

Element Solutions (NYSE:ESI) last issued its earnings results on Monday, October 28th. The company reported $0.39 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.38 by $0.01. Element Solutions had a net margin of 11.08% and a return on equity of 14.42%. The company had revenue of $645.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $626.52 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.36 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that Element Solutions will post 1.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Element Solutions Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd were paid a $0.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.24%. Element Solutions’s payout ratio is 28.83%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Element Solutions

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. UMB Bank n.a. increased its stake in Element Solutions by 98.8% in the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 1,910 shares of the company’s stock valued at $49,000 after acquiring an additional 949 shares during the period. Trust Co. of Vermont acquired a new stake in Element Solutions during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $43,000. Park Avenue Securities LLC grew its stake in shares of Element Solutions by 79.0% in the 4th quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 60,612 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,541,000 after purchasing an additional 26,753 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. acquired a new position in shares of Element Solutions in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,947,000. Finally, Moody National Bank Trust Division lifted its position in shares of Element Solutions by 20.3% during the 4th quarter. Moody National Bank Trust Division now owns 37,888 shares of the company’s stock worth $963,000 after buying an additional 6,402 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 92.32% of the company’s stock.

Element Solutions Company Profile

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.