Huntsman (NYSE:HUN) Trading 5.7% Higher – Should You Buy?

Huntsman Corporation (NYSE:HUN)’s share price rose 5.7% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $12.95 and last traded at $13.0720. Approximately 867,331 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 87% from the average daily volume of 6,676,961 shares. The stock had previously closed at $12.37.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently issued reports on HUN. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Huntsman from $13.00 to $14.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 19th. Mizuho boosted their target price on shares of Huntsman from $8.00 to $9.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Huntsman from $12.00 to $14.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Huntsman in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered shares of Huntsman from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their price target for the company from $11.00 to $14.00 in a report on Thursday, February 19th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $12.41.

Huntsman Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.22 billion, a P/E ratio of -7.73 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $12.26 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $10.49.

Huntsman (NYSE:HUN) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 17th. The basic materials company reported ($0.37) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.29) by ($0.08). The business had revenue of $1.36 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.34 billion. Huntsman had a negative net margin of 5.00% and a negative return on equity of 3.97%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 6.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted ($0.25) EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Huntsman Corporation will post 0.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Huntsman Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.0875 per share. This represents a $0.35 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 13th. Huntsman’s payout ratio is currently -21.34%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Strategic Advocates LLC bought a new stake in Huntsman in the third quarter valued at about $27,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. bought a new position in Huntsman during the third quarter worth about $33,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in Huntsman by 104.9% during the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,935 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 2,015 shares during the last quarter. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC grew its position in shares of Huntsman by 2,182.0% during the 3rd quarter. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC now owns 4,313 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 4,124 shares during the period. Finally, Bayforest Capital Ltd increased its stake in shares of Huntsman by 986.0% in the 3rd quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd now owns 6,505 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $58,000 after acquiring an additional 5,906 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.81% of the company’s stock.

Huntsman Company Profile

Huntsman Corporation is a global manufacturer and marketer of specialty chemicals with headquarters in The Woodlands, Texas. Founded in 1970 by entrepreneur Jon Huntsman Sr., the company has grown through strategic acquisitions and organic expansion to establish a broad portfolio of products serving diverse end markets. Huntsman maintains a presence in more than 30 countries, operating manufacturing facilities across North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, Latin America and the Middle East.

The company organizes its operations into several core business segments, including Polyurethanes, Performance Products, Advanced Materials, and Textile Effects.