Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC Raises Stake in Eastman Chemical (NYSE:EMN)

Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Eastman Chemical (NYSE:EMN) by 121.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,734 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,601 shares during the quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC’s holdings in Eastman Chemical were worth $432,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Stephens Inc. AR purchased a new position in shares of Eastman Chemical during the 4th quarter worth $262,000. WCM Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Eastman Chemical by 67.8% during the 4th quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC now owns 5,589 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $508,000 after purchasing an additional 2,259 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC grew its holdings in shares of Eastman Chemical by 24.4% during the 4th quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 17,379 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,587,000 after purchasing an additional 3,412 shares during the period. Apollon Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Eastman Chemical by 35.1% during the 4th quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,339 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $305,000 after purchasing an additional 867 shares during the period. Finally, Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd grew its holdings in shares of Eastman Chemical by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 12,135 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,108,000 after purchasing an additional 168 shares during the period. 83.65% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Eastman Chemical Price Performance

EMN stock opened at $100.99 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 1.52 and a quick ratio of 0.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.15, a P/E/G ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 1.44. The business’s 50-day moving average is $94.26 and its two-hundred day moving average is $100.13. Eastman Chemical has a 1 year low of $83.38 and a 1 year high of $114.50.

Eastman Chemical (NYSE:EMN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The basic materials company reported $1.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.60 by $0.27. Eastman Chemical had a return on equity of 16.40% and a net margin of 9.65%. Analysts anticipate that Eastman Chemical will post 8.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Eastman Chemical Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a dividend of $0.83 per share. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.29%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. Eastman Chemical’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 43.23%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Julie A. Mcalindon sold 4,456 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.84, for a total transaction of $471,623.04. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 4,403 shares in the company, valued at $466,013.52. The trade was a 50.30 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Stephen Glenn Crawford sold 10,504 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.00, for a total value of $1,102,920.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 47,287 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,965,135. The trade was a 18.18 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.93% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on EMN shares. Barclays lowered their price target on Eastman Chemical from $111.00 to $108.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Citigroup cut Eastman Chemical from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $118.00 to $104.00 in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Piper Sandler raised their target price on Eastman Chemical from $102.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday. StockNews.com upgraded Eastman Chemical from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, January 18th. Finally, UBS Group lowered their target price on Eastman Chemical from $124.00 to $123.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $114.08.

Eastman Chemical Profile

Eastman Chemical Company operates as a specialty materials company in the United States, China, and internationally. The company's Additives & Functional Products segment offers amine derivative-based building blocks, intermediates for surfactants, metam-based soil fumigants, and organic acid-based solutions; specialty coalescent and solvents, paint additives, and specialty polymers; and heat transfer and aviation fluids.