Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC Sells 32,879 Shares of Cabot Co. (NYSE:CBT)

Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC reduced its stake in Cabot Co. (NYSE:CBT) by 40.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 48,293 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 32,879 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC owned 0.09% of Cabot worth $4,292,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Cabot in the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Cabot by 197.9% in the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 417 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 277 shares during the period. CWM LLC grew its position in shares of Cabot by 35.6% in the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 564 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $63,000 after buying an additional 148 shares during the period. First Horizon Advisors Inc. grew its position in Cabot by 22.0% during the 3rd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 650 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $73,000 after purchasing an additional 117 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Values First Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Cabot during the 3rd quarter valued at about $82,000. 93.18% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Cabot Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE CBT opened at $85.68 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $89.85 and its 200-day moving average price is $101.05. The company has a quick ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 2.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The company has a market cap of $4.65 billion, a PE ratio of 11.38, a PEG ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 1.19. Cabot Co. has a 52-week low of $80.70 and a 52-week high of $117.46.

Cabot (NYSE:CBT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 3rd. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.74 by $0.02. Cabot had a net margin of 10.60% and a return on equity of 26.79%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Cabot Co. will post 7.57 EPS for the current year.

Cabot declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Tuesday, December 3rd that allows the company to repurchase 10,000,000 outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the specialty chemicals company to buy shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Cabot Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be issued a dividend of $0.43 per share. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.01%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. Cabot’s payout ratio is presently 22.84%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently commented on CBT shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded shares of Cabot from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and set a $105.00 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Monday, November 11th. StockNews.com raised shares of Cabot from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Mizuho cut their price objective on shares of Cabot from $122.00 to $110.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Cabot currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $102.00.

Cabot Company Profile

Cabot Corporation operates as a specialty chemicals and performance materials company. The company operates through two segments, Reinforcement Materials and Performance Chemicals. It offers reinforcing carbons that are used in tires as a rubber reinforcing agent and performance additive, as well as in industrial products, such as hoses, belts, extruded profiles, and molded goods; and engineered elastomer composites solutions.