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Eastman Chemical (EMN) Announces Hike in Quarterly Dividend
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Eastman Chemical Company (EMN - Free Report) announced that its board declared a quarterly cash dividend on its common stock of 69 cents per share, reflecting 5% increase from the prior payout of 66 cents per share.
Notably, the company hiked its dividend for the 11th consecutive year. This is consistent with its focus on disciplined and balanced capital allocation as well as shareholders’ returns.
The revised dividend will be payable on Jan 8, 2020, to shareholders of record as of Dec 15, 2020.
Per management, the dividend hike reflects the company’s capacity to generate strong cash flow and deliver earnings growth, which has remained resilient even during the global pandemic.
Eastman’s shares have gained 30.8% in the past year, compared with 10.6% rise of its industry.
Eastman Chemical generated cash from operating activities of $1.5 billion and free cash flow of $1.1 billion during 2019. The company’s net debt fell to $5,215 million at the end of the third quarter of 2020 from $5,249 million at the end of the prior quarter. Also, the metric declined 13% year over year.
It had a cash balance of $650 million at the end of the third quarter, a more than three fold year-over-year increase. The company also returned $269 million to its shareholders through dividends during the first nine months of 2020 and $90 million in the third quarter. It generated net cash from operating activities of $442 million and free cash flow of $360 million in the quarter.
It entered the fourth quarter with strong momentum and expects adjusted earnings per share (EPS) for fourth quarter to be similar to fourth-quarter 2019 adjusted EPS of $1.42. The company is also on track to deliver roughly $150 million of cost savings in 2020 with around $40 million expected in the fourth quarter. Moreover, it expects to generate more than $1 billion of free cash flow this year.
Some better-ranked stocks worth considering in the basic materials space are Bunge Limited (BG - Free Report) , Silvercorp Metals Inc. (SVM - Free Report) , and Pretium Resources Inc. .
Bunge has a projected earnings growth rate of 43% for the current year. The company’s shares have gained around 14.5% in a year. It currently sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
Silvercorp has an expected earnings growth rate of 40% for the current year. The company’s shares have rallied around 14.7% in the past year. It currently carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
Pretium Resources has an expected earnings growth rate of 25.5% for the current year. The company’s shares have gained around 9.3% in the past year. It currently carries a Zacks Rank #2.
5 Stocks Set to Double
Each was hand-picked by a Zacks expert as the #1 favorite stock to gain +100% or more in 2020. Each comes from a different sector and has unique qualities and catalysts that could fuel exceptional growth.
Most of the stocks in this report are flying under Wall Street radar, which provides a great opportunity to get in on the ground floor. Today, See These 5 Potential Home Runs >>
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Eastman Chemical (EMN) Announces Hike in Quarterly Dividend
Eastman Chemical Company (EMN - Free Report) announced that its board declared a quarterly cash dividend on its common stock of 69 cents per share, reflecting 5% increase from the prior payout of 66 cents per share.
Notably, the company hiked its dividend for the 11th consecutive year. This is consistent with its focus on disciplined and balanced capital allocation as well as shareholders’ returns.
The revised dividend will be payable on Jan 8, 2020, to shareholders of record as of Dec 15, 2020.
Per management, the dividend hike reflects the company’s capacity to generate strong cash flow and deliver earnings growth, which has remained resilient even during the global pandemic.
Eastman’s shares have gained 30.8% in the past year, compared with 10.6% rise of its industry.
Eastman Chemical generated cash from operating activities of $1.5 billion and free cash flow of $1.1 billion during 2019. The company’s net debt fell to $5,215 million at the end of the third quarter of 2020 from $5,249 million at the end of the prior quarter. Also, the metric declined 13% year over year.
It had a cash balance of $650 million at the end of the third quarter, a more than three fold year-over-year increase. The company also returned $269 million to its shareholders through dividends during the first nine months of 2020 and $90 million in the third quarter. It generated net cash from operating activities of $442 million and free cash flow of $360 million in the quarter.
It entered the fourth quarter with strong momentum and expects adjusted earnings per share (EPS) for fourth quarter to be similar to fourth-quarter 2019 adjusted EPS of $1.42. The company is also on track to deliver roughly $150 million of cost savings in 2020 with around $40 million expected in the fourth quarter. Moreover, it expects to generate more than $1 billion of free cash flow this year.
Eastman Chemical Company Price and Consensus
Eastman Chemical Company price-consensus-chart | Eastman Chemical Company Quote
Zacks Rank & Stocks to Consider
Eastman currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).
Some better-ranked stocks worth considering in the basic materials space are Bunge Limited (BG - Free Report) , Silvercorp Metals Inc. (SVM - Free Report) , and Pretium Resources Inc. .
Bunge has a projected earnings growth rate of 43% for the current year. The company’s shares have gained around 14.5% in a year. It currently sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
Silvercorp has an expected earnings growth rate of 40% for the current year. The company’s shares have rallied around 14.7% in the past year. It currently carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
Pretium Resources has an expected earnings growth rate of 25.5% for the current year. The company’s shares have gained around 9.3% in the past year. It currently carries a Zacks Rank #2.
5 Stocks Set to Double
Each was hand-picked by a Zacks expert as the #1 favorite stock to gain +100% or more in 2020. Each comes from a different sector and has unique qualities and catalysts that could fuel exceptional growth.
Most of the stocks in this report are flying under Wall Street radar, which provides a great opportunity to get in on the ground floor.
Today, See These 5 Potential Home Runs >>