Element Solutions (NYSE:ESI) Upgraded to “Buy” at Truist Financial

Truist Financial upgraded shares of Element Solutions (NYSE:ESI) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report sent to investors on Monday, MarketBeat reports. They currently have $24.00 target price on the stock, down from their prior target price of $28.00.

Other analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Element Solutions from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, December 16th. KeyCorp initiated coverage on Element Solutions in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $29.00 target price on the stock. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Element Solutions from $32.00 to $30.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Bank of America reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $28.00 price objective (down from $32.00) on shares of Element Solutions in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Element Solutions from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $29.38.

Element Solutions Price Performance

Shares of NYSE ESI opened at $18.86 on Monday. Element Solutions has a fifty-two week low of $16.77 and a fifty-two week high of $29.78. The company has a market cap of $4.57 billion, a PE ratio of 18.49, a P/E/G ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 2.77 and a current ratio of 3.34. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $24.05 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $25.73.

Element Solutions (NYSE:ESI) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The company reported $0.35 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.35. Element Solutions had a net margin of 9.94% and a return on equity of 14.68%. The company had revenue of $624.20 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $598.24 million. As a group, equities analysts expect that Element Solutions will post 1.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Element Solutions Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were given a dividend of $0.08 per share. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.70%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. Element Solutions’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 31.37%.

Insider Activity

In other Element Solutions news, Director Martin E. Franklin sold 2,000,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.10, for a total transaction of $52,200,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 109,100 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,847,510. The trade was a 94.83 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 7.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Park Avenue Securities LLC lifted its stake in shares of Element Solutions by 79.0% in the fourth quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 60,612 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,541,000 after buying an additional 26,753 shares in the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in Element Solutions in the 4th quarter worth approximately $423,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Element Solutions by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,328,894 shares of the company’s stock valued at $59,224,000 after purchasing an additional 29,253 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Element Solutions by 18.6% in the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 74,709 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,900,000 after purchasing an additional 11,702 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Entropy Technologies LP acquired a new stake in shares of Element Solutions in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $433,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.32% of the company’s stock.

Element Solutions Company Profile

Element Solutions Inc operates as a specialty chemicals company in the United States, China, and internationally. The company operates in two segments, Electronics, and Industrial & Specialty. The Electronics segment researches, formulates, and sells specialty chemicals and materials for various types of electronics hardware products.