Eastman Chemical (NYSE:EMN) Research Coverage Started at StockNews.com

StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Eastman Chemical (NYSE:EMN – Get Rating) in a research note released on Thursday morning. The firm issued a hold rating on the basic materials company’s stock.

Several other analysts also recently commented on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on shares of Eastman Chemical from $78.00 to $89.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research report on Thursday, December 15th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Eastman Chemical from $80.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a report on Monday, January 30th. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Eastman Chemical from $75.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a report on Thursday, December 15th. Mizuho reduced their price target on shares of Eastman Chemical from $85.00 to $82.00 and set a neutral rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 30th. Finally, Scotiabank downgraded shares of Eastman Chemical from a sector outperform rating to a sector perform rating and reduced their price target for the company from $100.00 to $90.00 in a report on Monday, January 30th. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of Hold and an average target price of $98.78.

Eastman Chemical Stock Down 3.3 %

Shares of EMN stock opened at $79.22 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $9.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.57, a PEG ratio of 2.18 and a beta of 1.48. Eastman Chemical has a one year low of $69.91 and a one year high of $114.97. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $86.97 and its 200-day moving average price is $83.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.16 and a quick ratio of 0.58.

Eastman Chemical (NYSE:EMN – Get Rating) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 27th. The basic materials company reported $0.89 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.26 by ($0.37). The firm had revenue of $2.37 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.42 billion. Eastman Chemical had a net margin of 7.50% and a return on equity of 17.82%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 11.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.81 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Eastman Chemical will post 7.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Eastman Chemical Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.79 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 14th. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.99%. Eastman Chemical’s dividend payout ratio is presently 50.16%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Eastman Chemical

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Addison Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Eastman Chemical during the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. Clear Street Markets LLC lifted its holdings in Eastman Chemical by 49.3% during the 3rd quarter. Clear Street Markets LLC now owns 403 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 133 shares in the last quarter. First Command Bank bought a new stake in Eastman Chemical during the 2nd quarter valued at about $30,000. Money Concepts Capital Corp raised its holdings in shares of Eastman Chemical by 435.0% in the 4th quarter. Money Concepts Capital Corp now owns 428 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 348 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Twin Lakes Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Eastman Chemical in the 3rd quarter valued at about $36,000. 83.42% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Eastman Chemical

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Eastman Chemical Co engages in the provision of specialty chemicals. It operates through the following segments: Advanced Material (AM), Additives and Functional Products (AFP), Chemical Intermediates (CI), and Fibers. The AM segment produces and markets its polymers, films, and plastics with differentiated performance properties for value-added end uses in transportation, consumables, building and construction, durable goods, and health and wellness markets.