Eastman Chemical (NYSE:EMN) Downgraded to “Hold” Rating by StockNews.com

StockNews.com downgraded shares of Eastman Chemical (NYSE:EMN) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report report published on Monday morning.

Several other research analysts have also issued reports on EMN. Mizuho increased their target price on Eastman Chemical from $107.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Bank of America downgraded Eastman Chemical from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $114.00 to $119.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Eastman Chemical from $118.00 to $110.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 4th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $105.00 target price on shares of Eastman Chemical in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $105.00 price target on shares of Eastman Chemical in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $112.86.

Eastman Chemical Stock Performance

NYSE:EMN opened at $104.23 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 1.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $106.37 and its 200 day simple moving average is $101.67. The stock has a market cap of $12.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 1.44. Eastman Chemical has a twelve month low of $80.71 and a twelve month high of $114.50.

Eastman Chemical (NYSE:EMN) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The basic materials company reported $2.26 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.14 by $0.12. Eastman Chemical had a net margin of 9.47% and a return on equity of 15.37%. The firm had revenue of $2.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.38 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.47 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Eastman Chemical will post 7.63 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Eastman Chemical

In related news, SVP Christopher Moore Killian sold 3,061 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.00, for a total value of $321,405.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 12,366 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,298,430. This trade represents a 19.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Julie A. Mcalindon sold 4,456 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.84, for a total transaction of $471,623.04. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 4,403 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $466,013.52. This represents a 50.30 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 18,021 shares of company stock worth $1,895,948 over the last quarter. 2.28% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Eastman Chemical

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in Eastman Chemical by 5.7% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 5,219,438 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $593,233,000 after acquiring an additional 282,458 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new position in shares of Eastman Chemical in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $656,000. Sanctuary Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Eastman Chemical by 21.5% in the third quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 26,008 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,746,000 after buying an additional 4,606 shares during the last quarter. Rehmann Capital Advisory Group purchased a new stake in Eastman Chemical during the third quarter valued at approximately $202,000. Finally, Fortem Financial Group LLC bought a new position in Eastman Chemical in the third quarter worth approximately $462,000. Institutional investors own 83.65% of the company’s stock.

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.