Koppers (NYSE:KOP) Hits New 52-Week Low – Time to Sell?

Koppers Holdings Inc. (NYSE:KOP)’s stock price reached a new 52-week low on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $27.00 and last traded at $27.89, with a volume of 223038 shares. The stock had previously closed at $27.81.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the company. StockNews.com cut Koppers from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Monday. Barrington Research reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $64.00 target price on shares of Koppers in a research report on Monday, February 24th.

Koppers Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.83, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 2.54. The stock has a market cap of $565.20 million, a P/E ratio of 7.92 and a beta of 1.83. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $30.73 and a 200-day simple moving average of $34.47.

Koppers (NYSE:KOP) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 27th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.77 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.95 by ($0.18). The firm had revenue of $477.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $497.00 million. Koppers had a return on equity of 16.71% and a net margin of 3.55%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Koppers Holdings Inc. will post 4.24 EPS for the current year.

Koppers Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 24th. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th will be issued a dividend of $0.08 per share. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.15%. This is a boost from Koppers’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.07. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. Koppers’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 13.17%.

Koppers declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Thursday, February 27th that permits the company to buyback $100.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the specialty chemicals company to repurchase up to 16.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Koppers

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Pzena Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Koppers by 91.8% during the 3rd quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 770,169 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $28,134,000 after purchasing an additional 368,709 shares in the last quarter. Foundry Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Koppers in the third quarter worth $4,022,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Koppers by 20.7% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 568,787 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $20,778,000 after purchasing an additional 97,586 shares during the period. Kennedy Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Koppers in the fourth quarter worth about $2,948,000. Finally, Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Koppers by 193.5% in the fourth quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 130,816 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $4,238,000 after acquiring an additional 86,246 shares in the last quarter. 92.75% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Koppers Company Profile

Koppers Holdings Inc provides treated wood products, wood preservation chemicals, and carbon compounds in the United States, Australasia, Europe, and internationally. The company operates through Railroad and Utility Products and Services (RUPS), Performance Chemicals (PC), and Carbon Materials and Chemicals (CMC) segments.