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

Eastman Chemical (NYSE:EMN) was downgraded by analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued on Friday.

Other equities research analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and issued a $105.00 target price on shares of Eastman Chemical in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Eastman Chemical from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $110.00 to $125.00 in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Bank of America cut shares of Eastman Chemical from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $114.00 to $119.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Citigroup lowered Eastman Chemical from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $118.00 to $104.00 in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price objective on Eastman Chemical from $115.00 to $110.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $113.69.

Eastman Chemical Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:EMN opened at $88.09 on Friday. Eastman Chemical has a twelve month low of $80.71 and a twelve month high of $114.50. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $98.17 and a 200 day moving average price of $100.59. The company has a market cap of $10.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.79, a PEG ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 1.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80.

Eastman Chemical (NYSE:EMN) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The basic materials company reported $2.26 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $2.46 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.38 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.47 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Eastman Chemical will post 7.63 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Eastman Chemical

In other news, SVP Julie A. Mcalindon sold 4,456 shares of Eastman Chemical 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 transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 4,403 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $466,013.52. This trade represents a 50.30 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Stephen Glenn Crawford sold 10,504 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.00, for a total transaction of $1,102,920.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 47,287 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,965,135. This represents a 18.18 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 18,021 shares of company stock worth $1,895,948 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 1.93% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. National Bank of Canada FI raised its holdings in shares of Eastman Chemical by 492.9% during the third quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 213,161 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $23,863,000 after acquiring an additional 177,207 shares during the period. KBC Group NV lifted its stake in Eastman Chemical by 21.8% in the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 110,610 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $12,383,000 after acquiring an additional 19,809 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in Eastman Chemical by 6.8% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 148,176 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $16,588,000 after acquiring an additional 9,447 shares during the last quarter. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc grew its stake in shares of Eastman Chemical by 21.0% during the 2nd quarter. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc now owns 46,288 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $4,535,000 after acquiring an additional 8,035 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pathway Financial Advisers LLC bought a new stake in shares of Eastman Chemical in the third quarter worth $632,000. 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.