Potomac Fund Management Inc. ADV Buys New Shares in Eastman Chemical (NYSE:EMN)

Potomac Fund Management Inc. ADV purchased a new position in shares of Eastman Chemical (NYSE:EMN) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 4,964 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $453,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new position in Eastman Chemical in the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Picton Mahoney Asset Management lifted its stake in shares of Eastman Chemical by 62.3% in the 4th quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management now owns 323 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Eastman Chemical by 384.4% during the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 373 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 296 shares during the period. Bradley & Co. Private Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Eastman Chemical during the 4th quarter worth approximately $35,000. Finally, Dunhill Financial LLC raised its holdings in Eastman Chemical by 94.7% in the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 333 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 162 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.65% of the company’s stock.

Eastman Chemical Price Performance

EMN stock opened at $88.12 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $10.15 billion, a PE ratio of 11.47, a P/E/G ratio of 1.22 and a beta of 1.43. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 1.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $95.43 and its two-hundred day moving average is $99.19. Eastman Chemical has a 52-week low of $85.84 and a 52-week high of $114.50.

Eastman Chemical (NYSE:EMN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The basic materials company reported $1.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.60 by $0.27. Eastman Chemical had a net margin of 9.65% and a return on equity of 16.27%. Analysts predict that Eastman Chemical will post 8.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Eastman Chemical Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a $0.83 dividend. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.77%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. Eastman Chemical’s dividend payout ratio is currently 43.23%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

EMN has been the subject of several research reports. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Eastman Chemical from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, January 18th. Barclays lowered their price target on Eastman Chemical from $111.00 to $108.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Bank of America upgraded Eastman Chemical from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $115.00 to $109.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Eastman Chemical from $110.00 to $112.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, UBS Group reduced their price target on Eastman Chemical from $124.00 to $123.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $114.08.

About Eastman Chemical

Eastman Chemical Company operates as a specialty materials company in the United States, China, and internationally. The company's Additives & Functional Products segment offers amine derivative-based building blocks, intermediates for surfactants, metam-based soil fumigants, and organic acid-based solutions; specialty coalescent and solvents, paint additives, and specialty polymers; and heat transfer and aviation fluids.