Short Interest in Element Solutions Inc (NYSE:ESI) Decreases By 5.8%

Element Solutions Inc (NYSE:ESI) was the recipient of a large decline in short interest during the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 3,580,000 shares, a decline of 5.8% from the March 15th total of 3,800,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 1,340,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.7 days. Currently, 1.6% of the company’s shares are sold short.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ESI has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on shares of Element Solutions in a research report on Friday, March 1st. They set a “peer perform” rating for the company. StockNews.com cut Element Solutions from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on shares of Element Solutions from $22.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 5th. TheStreet raised shares of Element Solutions from a “c+” rating to a “b” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. Finally, Mizuho reduced their target price on shares of Element Solutions from $27.00 to $26.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 21st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Element Solutions has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $25.60.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Michael Goralski sold 11,604 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.20, for a total value of $269,212.80. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 143,446 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,327,947.20. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, EVP Michael Goralski sold 11,604 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.20, for a total value of $269,212.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 143,446 shares in the company, valued at $3,327,947.20. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Carey J. Dorman sold 1,410 shares of Element Solutions stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.20, for a total value of $32,712.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 177,113 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,109,021.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 97,203 shares of company stock valued at $2,255,110. 7.90% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Element Solutions

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ESI. Richardson Financial Services Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Element Solutions during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Element Solutions by 85.6% in the 3rd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,318 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 608 shares during the last quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Element Solutions by 370.4% in the fourth quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 1,623 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 1,278 shares during the period. CWM LLC raised its stake in shares of Element Solutions by 95.9% during the fourth quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,810 shares of the company’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 886 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Assetmark Inc. increased its stake in Element Solutions by 1,585.0% in the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 2,022 shares of the company’s stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 1,902 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.32% of the company’s stock.

Element Solutions Stock Down 0.9 %

ESI stock traded down $0.22 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $24.23. 102,182 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,299,217. The company has a market cap of $5.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 49.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 1.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 2.43 and a current ratio of 3.24. Element Solutions has a 1-year low of $17.08 and a 1-year high of $25.81. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $24.05 and its 200 day simple moving average is $21.99.

Element Solutions (NYSE:ESI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 20th. The company reported $0.32 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.32. Element Solutions had a net margin of 5.06% and a return on equity of 13.51%. The firm had revenue of $573.40 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $590.43 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.29 EPS. Element Solutions’s revenue for the quarter was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Element Solutions will post 1.4 earnings per share for the current year.

Element Solutions Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Investors of record on Friday, March 1st were paid a dividend of $0.08 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 29th. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.32%. Element Solutions’s dividend payout ratio is presently 65.31%.

About Element Solutions

Element Solutions Inc operates as a specialty chemicals company in the United States, China, and internationally. The company operates in two segments, Electronics, and Industrial & Specialty. The Electronics segment researches, formulates, and sells specialty chemicals and materials for various types of electronics hardware products.