M Leroy Ball Sells 5,000 Shares of Koppers Holdings Inc. (NYSE:KOP) Stock

Koppers Holdings Inc. (NYSE:KOP) CEO M Leroy Ball sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.92, for a total value of $189,600.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 315,129 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,949,691.68. The trade was a 1.56 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website.

Koppers Stock Performance

KOP traded down $0.36 during trading on Thursday, reaching $37.56. 142,110 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 145,897. Koppers Holdings Inc. has a 52 week low of $33.80 and a 52 week high of $58.23. The stock has a market cap of $761.34 million, a P/E ratio of 10.77 and a beta of 1.84. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $36.39 and a 200 day moving average of $38.82. The company has a current ratio of 2.54, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.83.

Koppers (NYSE:KOP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 8th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.25 by $0.12. Koppers had a return on equity of 16.71% and a net margin of 3.55%. The company had revenue of $554.30 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $571.80 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.32 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Koppers Holdings Inc. will post 4.24 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Koppers Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Friday, November 29th will be paid a dividend of $0.07 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. This represents a $0.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.75%. Koppers’s dividend payout ratio is currently 7.95%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. StockNews.com upgraded Koppers from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday. Singular Research raised Koppers to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, September 20th. Finally, Barrington Research reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $64.00 price target on shares of Koppers in a research report on Tuesday.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Koppers

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Acadian Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Koppers by 91.7% in the 1st quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 119,691 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $6,601,000 after acquiring an additional 57,252 shares in the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. increased its holdings in shares of Koppers by 78.6% during the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 65,018 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $3,587,000 after acquiring an additional 28,605 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its holdings in shares of Koppers by 37.1% during the 2nd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 132,016 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $4,883,000 after acquiring an additional 35,741 shares during the last quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Koppers in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $5,671,000. Finally, Natixis Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Koppers in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $700,000. 92.75% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Koppers

Koppers Holdings Inc provides treated wood products, wood preservation chemicals, and carbon compounds in the United States, Australasia, Europe, and internationally. The company operates through Railroad and Utility Products and Services (RUPS), Performance Chemicals (PC), and Carbon Materials and Chemicals (CMC) segments.