Bryn Mawr Trust Advisors LLC Buys Shares of 2,966 Quaker Houghton $KWR

Bryn Mawr Trust Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Quaker Houghton (NYSE:KWR) in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm bought 2,966 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock, valued at approximately $471,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its stake in shares of Quaker Houghton by 67,340.0% during the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 16,860 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $2,315,000 after acquiring an additional 16,835 shares during the last quarter. GW&K Investment Management LLC grew its position in Quaker Houghton by 42.3% in the 4th quarter. GW&K Investment Management LLC now owns 406,329 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $55,793,000 after acquiring an additional 120,772 shares during the last quarter. Royce & Associates LP grew its position in Quaker Houghton by 19.2% in the 4th quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 755,740 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $103,771,000 after acquiring an additional 121,854 shares during the last quarter. Global Alpha Capital Management Ltd. purchased a new stake in Quaker Houghton in the fourth quarter worth $21,132,000. Finally, William Blair Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Quaker Houghton by 33.6% in the fourth quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 469,981 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $64,533,000 after purchasing an additional 118,321 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 77.46% of the company’s stock.

Quaker Houghton Price Performance

NYSE KWR opened at $170.65 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $2.94 billion, a PE ratio of 30.42, a P/E/G ratio of 1.22 and a beta of 1.40. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $155.13 and its 200-day moving average price is $146.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 1.70 and a current ratio of 2.46. Quaker Houghton has a 52-week low of $112.18 and a 52-week high of $183.01.

Quaker Houghton (NYSE:KWR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.19 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.66 by $0.53. The company had revenue of $532.55 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $504.63 million. Quaker Houghton had a net margin of 4.94% and a return on equity of 9.55%. Quaker Houghton’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.71 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Quaker Houghton will post 7.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Quaker Houghton announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, May 13th that permits the company to repurchase $250.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the specialty chemicals company to purchase up to 10.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Quaker Houghton Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 16th will be issued a $0.53 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 16th. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. This is a boost from Quaker Houghton’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.51. Quaker Houghton’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.19%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Quaker Houghton

In other news, Director William H. Osborne sold 600 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $168.31, for a total value of $100,986.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 616 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $103,678.96. The trade was a 49.34% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Jeewat Bijlani sold 731 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.77, for a total value of $106,557.87. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 6,748 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $983,655.96. This trade represents a 9.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on KWR. Zacks Research raised shares of Quaker Houghton from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Truist Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $190.00 price target (up from $172.00) on shares of Quaker Houghton in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Quaker Houghton from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, August 1st. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Quaker Houghton from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, Seaport Research Partners upgraded shares of Quaker Houghton from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $175.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $187.67.

Quaker Houghton Profile

Quaker Houghton is a global provider of process fluids, chemical specialties and sustainable solutions for industrial applications. The company develops and supplies metalworking fluids, coatings, and corrosion inhibitors, as well as heat transfer, lubrication and additive products designed to improve productivity and extend equipment life. Its portfolio addresses a range of end markets including automotive, aerospace, defense, energy, mining, agriculture and heavy industry.

The company traces its roots back to the founding of Quaker Chemical Corporation in 1918 and Houghton International in 1865.