Olin (NYSE:OLN) Reaches New 12-Month Low – What’s Next?

Olin Co. (NYSE:OLN)’s share price hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $22.33 and last traded at $22.50, with a volume of 115258 shares. The stock had previously closed at $24.70.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on OLN shares. UBS Group set a $28.00 price target on shares of Olin in a report on Thursday, February 27th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price target on Olin from $44.00 to $34.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Olin from $31.00 to $25.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Truist Financial decreased their price target on shares of Olin from $38.00 to $32.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Barclays cut their target price on shares of Olin from $34.00 to $28.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Olin currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $36.69.

Olin Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of $2.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.32 and a beta of 1.50. The company has a current ratio of 1.27, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $26.27 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $35.50.

Olin (NYSE:OLN) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.09 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.01) by $0.10. Olin had a net margin of 1.66% and a return on equity of 5.10%. As a group, research analysts expect that Olin Co. will post 1.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Olin Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 6th were issued a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.98%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 6th. Olin’s payout ratio is 88.89%.

Olin declared that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Thursday, December 12th that authorizes the company to buyback $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the specialty chemicals company to buy up to 45% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Kenneth Todd Lane acquired 7,250 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 4th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $28.06 per share, for a total transaction of $203,435.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 7,250 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $203,435. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 1.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Olin by 11.5% during the fourth quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,543,844 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $153,582,000 after acquiring an additional 467,680 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in Olin by 4.7% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,976,869 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $134,413,000 after purchasing an additional 178,145 shares in the last quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in Olin by 7.4% during the fourth quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 3,709,611 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $125,385,000 after buying an additional 256,903 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Olin by 9.1% in the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 3,201,233 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $108,202,000 after buying an additional 265,745 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Thrivent Financial for Lutherans grew its holdings in shares of Olin by 5,746.2% during the fourth quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 1,613,796 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $54,546,000 after buying an additional 1,586,192 shares during the last quarter. 88.67% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Olin

Olin Corporation manufactures and distributes chemical products in the United States, Europe, Asia Pacific, Latin America, and Canada. It operates through three segments: Chlor Alkali Products and Vinyls; Epoxy; and Winchester. The Chlor Alkali Products and Vinyls segment offers chlorine and caustic soda, ethylene dichloride and vinyl chloride monomers, methyl chloride, methylene chloride, chloroform, carbon tetrachloride, perchloroethylene, hydrochloric acid, hydrogen, bleach products, potassium hydroxide, and chlorinated organics intermediates and solvents.