Zacks: Analysts Anticipate Huntsman Co. (HUN) to Post $0.85 EPS

Equities research analysts forecast that Huntsman Co. (NYSE:HUN) will announce $0.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal quarter, Zacks reports. Three analysts have provided estimates for Huntsman’s earnings, with the highest EPS estimate coming in at $0.95 and the lowest estimate coming in at $0.80. Huntsman posted earnings of $0.67 per share in the same quarter last year, which would indicate a positive year over year growth rate of 26.9%. The firm is scheduled to issue its next earnings results on Friday, October 26th.

According to Zacks, analysts expect that Huntsman will report full-year earnings of $3.52 per share for the current financial year, with EPS estimates ranging from $3.40 to $3.75. For the next year, analysts anticipate that the company will post earnings of $3.64 per share, with EPS estimates ranging from $3.41 to $4.00. Zacks Investment Research’s EPS averages are an average based on a survey of research analysts that that provide coverage for Huntsman.

Huntsman (NYSE:HUN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 31st. The basic materials company reported $1.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.84 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $2.40 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.24 billion. Huntsman had a net margin of 11.92% and a return on equity of 24.14%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 17.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.59 earnings per share.

Several brokerages recently issued reports on HUN. ValuEngine downgraded shares of Huntsman from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, September 1st. Seaport Global Securities began coverage on shares of Huntsman in a research note on Friday, August 24th. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “buy” rating and set a $38.00 price objective on shares of Huntsman in a research note on Wednesday, August 1st. Zacks Investment Research downgraded shares of Huntsman from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 24th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Huntsman from $42.50 to $43.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Huntsman has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $37.46.

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Brinker Capital Inc. raised its stake in shares of Huntsman by 17.7% in the 1st quarter. Brinker Capital Inc. now owns 12,148 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $355,000 after acquiring an additional 1,831 shares during the period. Northpointe Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of Huntsman by 2.0% in the 2nd quarter. Northpointe Capital LLC now owns 109,733 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $3,204,000 after acquiring an additional 2,152 shares during the period. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd raised its stake in shares of Huntsman by 46.5% in the 2nd quarter. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd now owns 7,038 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $206,000 after acquiring an additional 2,235 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Huntsman by 10.3% in the 1st quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 26,832 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $784,000 after acquiring an additional 2,511 shares during the period. Finally, Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio raised its stake in shares of Huntsman by 1.5% in the 2nd quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 180,700 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $5,276,000 after acquiring an additional 2,612 shares during the period. 77.30% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Shares of HUN traded down $0.18 on Wednesday, hitting $28.41. 201,626 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,691,289. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 1.58 and a current ratio of 1.93. The company has a market capitalization of $6.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.47, a PEG ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 2.74. Huntsman has a 1 year low of $26.59 and a 1 year high of $36.09.

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.1625 per share. This represents a $0.65 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.29%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 13th. Huntsman’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.21%.

Huntsman declared that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Wednesday, May 23rd that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the basic materials company to buy up to 13.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Huntsman Company Profile

Huntsman Corporation, through its subsidiary, Huntsman International LLC, manufactures and sells differentiated organic chemical products worldwide. The company operates in four segments: Polyurethanes, Performance Products, Advanced Materials, and Textile Effects. The Polyurethanes segment offers polyurethane chemicals, including methyl diphenyl diisocyanate, polyols, thermoplastic polyurethane, propylene oxide, and methyl tertiary-butyl ether products.

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