Short Interest in Orion S.A. (NYSE:OEC) Decreases By 20.2%

Orion S.A. (NYSE:OEC) saw a significant decline in short interest in the month of March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 690,100 shares, a decline of 20.2% from the February 28th total of 865,200 shares. Currently, 1.3% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 533,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.3 days.

Orion Stock Down 0.5 %

OEC traded down $0.06 on Wednesday, reaching $12.59. 579,728 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 491,649. Orion has a 52-week low of $11.87 and a 52-week high of $26.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a current ratio of 1.24 and a quick ratio of 0.71. The company has a market cap of $713.27 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.79 and a beta of 1.25. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $13.91 and its 200-day moving average price is $15.66.

Orion (NYSE:OEC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.35 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.25 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $434.20 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $437.03 million. Orion had a net margin of 2.35% and a return on equity of 20.94%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Orion will post 1.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Orion Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 4th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 13th will be given a dividend of $0.0207 per share. This represents a $0.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.66%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 13th. Orion’s payout ratio is presently 10.67%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

OEC has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group decreased their price objective on shares of Orion from $23.00 to $22.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Orion from $21.00 to $18.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 21st.

Insider Transactions at Orion

In other news, VP Carlos Quinones bought 3,300 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $13.07 per share, for a total transaction of $43,131.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the vice president now directly owns 79,702 shares in the company, valued at $1,041,705.14. This represents a 4.32 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 2.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Orion

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Orion in the 4th quarter valued at $159,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its holdings in Orion by 30.5% during the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 118,937 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $1,878,000 after buying an additional 27,804 shares in the last quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP acquired a new stake in shares of Orion in the fourth quarter worth about $382,000. ProShare Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Orion by 49.0% during the 4th quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 16,214 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $256,000 after acquiring an additional 5,335 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nuveen Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Orion by 20.3% during the 4th quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 694,579 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $10,967,000 after acquiring an additional 117,022 shares during the last quarter. 94.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.