Squarepoint Ops LLC Sells 2,119 Shares of Cabot Co. (NYSE:CBT)

Squarepoint Ops LLC reduced its position in shares of Cabot Co. (NYSE:CBT) by 3.2% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 64,459 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 2,119 shares during the period. Squarepoint Ops LLC owned approximately 0.12% of Cabot worth $5,923,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. CWM LLC boosted its holdings in Cabot by 60.6% in the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 416 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 157 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in Cabot by 33.4% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 475 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $48,000 after acquiring an additional 119 shares during the period. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Cabot in the 2nd quarter valued at $49,000. Mather Group LLC. acquired a new position in Cabot in the 2nd quarter valued at $58,000. Finally, nVerses Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Cabot during the 2nd quarter valued at $64,000. 93.18% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Cabot Stock Down 0.7 %

CBT stock opened at $110.83 on Monday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $101.37 and a 200-day moving average price of $97.48. Cabot Co. has a 12 month low of $65.10 and a 12 month high of $113.12. The company has a current ratio of 2.22, a quick ratio of 1.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 1.19.

Cabot (NYSE:CBT) last posted its earnings results on Monday, August 5th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.92 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.72 by $0.20. Cabot had a net margin of 12.05% and a return on equity of 26.99%. The firm had revenue of $1.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.42 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 5.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Cabot Co. will post 7.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cabot Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 30th were issued a dividend of $0.43 per share. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.55%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 30th. Cabot’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 21.77%.

Insider Activity

In other Cabot news, EVP Hobart Kalkstein sold 5,457 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $100.58, for a total transaction of $548,865.06. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 61,688 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,204,579.04. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, CFO Erica Mclaughlin sold 23,274 shares of Cabot stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.79, for a total value of $2,322,512.46. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 59,814 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,968,839.06. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Hobart Kalkstein sold 5,457 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $100.58, for a total transaction of $548,865.06. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 61,688 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,204,579.04. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 71,939 shares of company stock valued at $7,308,812 over the last quarter. 3.07% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CBT has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Cabot from $95.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Cabot from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, June 24th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of Cabot from $103.00 to $98.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, August 6th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Cabot presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $101.75.

Cabot Profile

Cabot Corporation operates as a specialty chemicals and performance materials company. The company operates through two segments, Reinforcement Materials and Performance Chemicals. It offers reinforcing carbons that are used in tires as a rubber reinforcing agent and performance additive, as well as in industrial products, such as hoses, belts, extruded profiles, and molded goods; and engineered elastomer composites solutions.