Eastman Chemical upgraded to Overweight at J.P. Morgan

Eastman Chemical (NYSE:EMN) on Monday was upgraded to Overweight from a previous investment rating of Neutral by analysts at financial-services firm J.P. Morgan. They said the chemical maker is poised to improve profits.

“There is room for Eastman’s (EMN) earnings to rebound in 2024,” Jeffrey Zekauskas, analyst at J.P. Morgan, said in an October 30 report. “Eastman’s (EMN) businesses in 2023 have been penalized by de-stocking effects in the durable goods markets, the coatings markets, as well as by poor profits in its commodity chemical intermediates businesses.”

J.P. Morgan maintained its price target for Eastman (EMN) of $90 a share, based on an enterprise value that’s 8.5 times estimated ebitda and a free cash flow yield of 4.1% for 2024. The valuation also about 8 times estimated ebitda and a free cash flow yield of 5.2% for 2025.

“The combination of earnings recovery, a 4.4% dividend yield and good free cash flow should lead to Eastman’s outperformance in the coming year,” according to J.P. Morgan.

The analysts on the same day downgraded chemical maker Olin (OLN).