850,547 Shares in Orion S.A. (NYSE:OEC) Bought by Grizzlyrock Capital LLC

Grizzlyrock Capital LLC bought a new position in Orion S.A. (NYSE:OEC) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 850,547 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,586,000. Orion makes up about 17.7% of Grizzlyrock Capital LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its largest holding. Grizzlyrock Capital LLC owned 1.47% of Orion at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Orion by 1,355.0% in the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 687,659 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $19,069,000 after purchasing an additional 640,398 shares during the last quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group acquired a new stake in shares of Orion in the fourth quarter valued at about $17,174,000. Jade Capital Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Orion by 420.4% in the fourth quarter. Jade Capital Advisors LLC now owns 328,041 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $9,097,000 after buying an additional 265,000 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. raised its position in shares of Orion by 22.2% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,291,485 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $27,483,000 after acquiring an additional 234,888 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Brown Advisory Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Orion by 20.3% in the fourth quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 1,389,560 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $38,533,000 after acquiring an additional 234,153 shares during the period. 94.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have issued reports on OEC. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Orion from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Mizuho lifted their target price on shares of Orion from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, May 3rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $28.00.

Orion Trading Down 1.5 %

Shares of Orion stock traded down $0.35 on Thursday, reaching $23.59. 69,246 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 367,752. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $24.41 and its two-hundred day moving average is $24.11. The company has a market capitalization of $1.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.18 and a beta of 1.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 1.45. Orion S.A. has a 52 week low of $19.32 and a 52 week high of $28.48.

Orion (NYSE:OEC) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.63 by ($0.11). Orion had a return on equity of 21.07% and a net margin of 4.64%. The company had revenue of $502.90 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $506.38 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.74 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up .4% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Orion S.A. will post 2.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Orion Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 2nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 11th will be paid a dividend of $0.021 per share. This represents a $0.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.36%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 11th. Orion’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 5.41%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Sandra Niewiem sold 8,305 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.21, for a total value of $201,064.05. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 14,099 shares in the company, valued at approximately $341,336.79. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, VP Sandra Niewiem sold 8,305 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.21, for a total transaction of $201,064.05. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 14,099 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $341,336.79. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Jeffrey Glajch bought 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 7th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $23.68 per share, for a total transaction of $118,400.00. Following the acquisition, the chief financial officer now directly owns 77,061 shares in the company, valued at $1,824,804.48. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 6.30% of the company’s stock.

Orion Company Profile

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.