NewMarket (NYSE:NEU) Rating Lowered to Buy at StockNews.com

StockNews.com downgraded shares of NewMarket (NYSE:NEU) from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a research report sent to investors on Monday.

NewMarket Price Performance

NYSE NEU opened at $539.79 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 2.75 and a quick ratio of 1.50. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $514.74 and its 200 day moving average price is $534.48. NewMarket has a 1 year low of $480.00 and a 1 year high of $650.00. The company has a market cap of $5.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.20 and a beta of 0.48.

NewMarket (NYSE:NEU) last released its earnings results on Monday, February 3rd. The specialty chemicals company reported $11.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. NewMarket had a return on equity of 35.48% and a net margin of 16.59%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On NewMarket

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Natixis Advisors LLC grew its position in NewMarket by 19.4% during the 3rd quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 17,254 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $9,522,000 after purchasing an additional 2,807 shares during the period. Barclays PLC grew its position in NewMarket by 34.5% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 4,813 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $2,656,000 after purchasing an additional 1,235 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its position in NewMarket by 40.0% during the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 5,119 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $2,655,000 after purchasing an additional 1,463 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in NewMarket by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 50,585 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $27,917,000 after purchasing an additional 722 shares during the period. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its position in NewMarket by 13.6% during the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 20,284 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $11,195,000 after purchasing an additional 2,436 shares during the period. 61.09% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

NewMarket Company Profile

NewMarket Corporation, through its subsidiaries, primarily engages in the manufacture and sale of petroleum additives. The company offers lubricant additives for use in various vehicle and industrial applications, including engine oils, transmission fluids, off-road powertrain and hydraulic systems, gear oils, hydraulic oils, turbine oils, and other applications where metal-to-metal moving parts are utilized; engine oil additives designed for passenger cars, motorcycles, on and off-road heavy duty commercial equipment, locomotives, and engines in ocean-going vessels; driveline additives designed for products, such as transmission fluids, axle fluids, and off-road powertrain fluids; and industrial additives designed for products for industrial applications consisting of hydraulic fluids, grease, industrial gear fluids, and industrial specialty applications, such as turbine oils.