Huntsman Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NYSE:HUN)

Huntsman Corporation (NYSE:HUN) was the target of unusually large options trading activity on Tuesday. Traders bought 14,272 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 120% compared to the typical volume of 6,475 call options.

Huntsman Stock Performance

HUN traded up $1.49 on Tuesday, reaching $12.97. The company had a trading volume of 10,942,448 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,136,167. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. Huntsman has a 1 year low of $7.30 and a 1 year high of $18.53. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.25 billion, a PE ratio of -6.83 and a beta of 0.70. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $10.72 and a 200-day moving average price of $9.97.

Huntsman (NYSE:HUN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 6th. The basic materials company reported ($0.03) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.13) by $0.10. The company had revenue of $1.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.45 billion. Huntsman had a negative return on equity of 3.26% and a negative net margin of 5.69%.The business’s quarterly revenue was down 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.10 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Huntsman will post 0.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Huntsman Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Monday, December 15th were given a $0.0875 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 15th. This represents a $0.35 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.7%. Huntsman’s dividend payout ratio is -18.42%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on HUN shares. KeyCorp reiterated a “sector weight” rating on shares of Huntsman in a report on Monday, December 22nd. Bank of America reissued an “underperform” rating and set a $8.00 price objective (down from $9.00) on shares of Huntsman in a research report on Tuesday, October 14th. Mizuho upped their target price on shares of Huntsman from $7.00 to $8.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 18th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Huntsman from $10.00 to $13.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 16th. Finally, Alembic Global Advisors set a $11.00 price objective on shares of Huntsman in a research report on Monday, October 27th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Huntsman presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $11.00.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of HUN. UBS Group AG increased its stake in Huntsman by 83.5% in the 3rd quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 7,364,206 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $66,131,000 after purchasing an additional 3,351,265 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Huntsman by 29.8% in the third quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 12,062,972 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $106,878,000 after buying an additional 2,772,563 shares in the last quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP raised its stake in shares of Huntsman by 476.5% during the 3rd quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 2,841,510 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $25,517,000 after buying an additional 2,348,598 shares during the last quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Huntsman in the 2nd quarter worth about $21,953,000. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Huntsman in the 2nd quarter valued at about $21,651,000. 84.81% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Huntsman

Huntsman Corporation is a global manufacturer and marketer of specialty chemicals with headquarters in The Woodlands, Texas. Founded in 1970 by entrepreneur Jon Huntsman Sr., the company has grown through strategic acquisitions and organic expansion to establish a broad portfolio of products serving diverse end markets. Huntsman maintains a presence in more than 30 countries, operating manufacturing facilities across North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, Latin America and the Middle East.

The company organizes its operations into several core business segments, including Polyurethanes, Performance Products, Advanced Materials, and Textile Effects.