Orion S.A. (NYSE:OEC) Short Interest Up 29.9% in October

by · The Markets Daily

Orion S.A. (NYSE:OEC – Get Free Report) saw a significant growth in short interest in the month of October. As of October 15th, there was short interest totalling 630,500 shares, a growth of 29.9% from the September 30th total of 485,200 shares. Approximately 1.1% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 539,800 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.2 days.

Orion Stock Down 1.2 %

Orion stock traded down $0.19 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $15.35. The company had a trading volume of 62,914 shares, compared to its average volume of 429,359. Orion has a fifty-two week low of $15.17 and a fifty-two week high of $28.48. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $895.83 million, a P/E ratio of 11.77 and a beta of 1.46. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $17.07 and its 200-day moving average is $20.79.

Orion (NYSE:OEC – Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.41 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.59 by ($0.18). The firm had revenue of $477.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $491.14 million. Orion had a return on equity of 19.21% and a net margin of 4.09%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.53 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Orion will post 1.85 earnings per share for the current year.

Orion Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, January 21st. Investors of record on Friday, December 13th will be issued a $0.021 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 13th. This is a boost from Orion’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.02. This represents a $0.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.55%. Orion’s dividend payout ratio is currently 6.06%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Orion news, CFO Jeffrey Glajch acquired 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 7th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $18.16 per share, with a total value of $272,400.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 101,855 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,849,686.80. This represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In related news, CFO Jeffrey Glajch purchased 15,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 7th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $18.16 per share, with a total value of $272,400.00. Following the purchase, the chief financial officer now owns 101,855 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,849,686.80. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Corning F. Painter acquired 20,000 shares of Orion stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 7th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $17.48 per share, with a total value of $349,600.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 948,776 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,584,604.48. This represents a 0.00 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have acquired 47,500 shares of company stock valued at $845,225. Company insiders own 2.20% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Orion

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. CWM LLC lifted its stake in shares of Orion by 207.0% in the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,094 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $46,000 after buying an additional 1,412 shares during the last quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale acquired a new position in Orion during the 2nd quarter worth $54,000. nVerses Capital LLC bought a new stake in Orion during the third quarter valued at about $69,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Orion by 1,375.1% during the first quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 3,791 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $89,000 after acquiring an additional 3,534 shares during the period. Finally, Quarry LP grew its position in shares of Orion by 76.9% in the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 4,776 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $105,000 after purchasing an additional 2,076 shares during the last quarter. 94.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have issued reports on OEC. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Orion from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Orion from $24.00 to $20.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th.

Get Our Latest Analysis on Orion

Orion Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

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.

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