TakeoverPE & activists

KWRQUAKER CHEMICAL CORP

Miscellaneous Products Of Petroleum & Coal · $2.6B market cap · 4,700 employees

1.4×

More likely than average to be taken private

Top 10% of the Russell 3000 for a buyout by a private-equity firm, holdco or insiders. How it works

Takeover signals

What an activist or buyer would see: cheap, overpaid, diluted or under pressure.

2of 15 firedHow well they predict deals →
13 other checks
  • TSR below peersNo
    —
    3+ of last 5 years
  • High CEO pay despite TSRNo
    —
    Median CEO pay ≥ $15M while TSR trails
  • Earnings not backed by cashNo
    —
    Cash flow under 80% of net income
  • Dilutive SBCNo
    1% of revenue
    Over 10% of revenue
  • Payouts exceed cash flowNo
    56% of cash flow
    Buybacks + dividends over cash flow
  • Goodwill-heavyNo
    17% of assets
    Over 40% of assets
  • Shareholder dissentNo
    96% lowest support
    Any vote under 80% support
  • Quiet on AINo
    1.6 per 10K words · 48th pct
    Bottom quartile of AI mentions in 10-Ks
  • Net cashNo
    5.6× EBITDA net debt
    More cash than debt, positive EBITDA
  • Recurring revenueNo
    6 of 10
    10-K business scored 7+ of 10 for recurring revenue
  • AI-rollup shapedNo
    1 of 10
    10-K business scored 5+ of 10 as an AI-rollup target
  • Active 13DNo
    0 filings
    Active-intent 13D in 18 months
  • Net insider sellingNo
    −$208K net
    Net sales over $10M in 12 months

Deal filings

FiledFormAcquirerPricePremium
Jul 31, 2017DEFM14AGlobal Houghton Ltd.$626344715.00172500000%
Jun 6, 2017PREM14AGlobal Houghton Ltd.$139.0324.5%

Key numbers

Revenue
$1.9BFY2021: $1.8BFY2022: $1.9BFY2023: $2.0BFY2024: $1.8BFY2025: $1.9B
2.7% YoY
Operating margin
2.8%FY2021: 8.5%FY2022: 2.7%FY2023: 11.0%FY2024: 10.6%FY2025: 2.8%
73% YoY
EBITDA
$119MFY2021: $213MFY2022: $113MFY2023: $275MFY2024: $256MFY2025: $119M
54% YoY
Net debt / EBITDA
5.6×
$668M net debt

Financials

MetricFY2021FY2022FY2023FY2024FY2025YoYTrend
Revenue$1.8B$1.9B$2.0B$1.8B$1.9B 2.7% FY2021: $1.8BFY2022: $1.9BFY2023: $2.0BFY2024: $1.8BFY2025: $1.9B
Operating income$150M$52M$214M$195M$53M 73% FY2021: $150MFY2022: $52MFY2023: $214MFY2024: $195MFY2025: $53M
Net income$121M−$16M$113M$117M−$2M 102% FY2021: $121MFY2022: −$16MFY2023: $113MFY2024: $117MFY2025: −$2M
Operating cash flow$49M$42M$279M$205M$136M 33% FY2021: $49MFY2022: $42MFY2023: $279MFY2024: $205MFY2025: $136M
Capex$21M$29M$39M$42M$56M 34% FY2021: $21MFY2022: $29MFY2023: $39MFY2024: $42MFY2025: $56M
Stock-based comp$11M$12M$15M$15M$14M 9.2% FY2021: $11MFY2022: $12MFY2023: $15MFY2024: $15MFY2025: $14M
Buybacks—$0$0$49M$42M 16% FY2022: $0FY2023: $0FY2024: $49MFY2025: $42M
Dividends$29M$30M$32M$33M$34M 3.7% FY2021: $29MFY2022: $30MFY2023: $32MFY2024: $33MFY2025: $34M

13D filers

FiledFilerFormStakeIntent
Aug 24, 2026Gulf Hungary Holding Korlatolt Felelossegu TarsasagSCHEDULE 13D/A21.1%Passive
May 28, 2026Gulf Hungary Holding Korlatolt Felelossegu TarsasagSCHEDULE 13D/A21.0%Passive
Nov 28, 2025Gulf Hungary Holding Korlatolt Felelossegu TarsasagSCHEDULE 13D/A21.0%Passive
May 27, 2025Gulf Hungary Holding Korlatolt Felelossegu TarsasagSCHEDULE 13D/A21.0%Passive
Feb 11, 2025Gulf Hungary Holding Korlatolt Felelossegu TarsasagSCHEDULE 13D/A20.9%Passive
Feb 6, 2025Gulf Hungary Holding Korlatolt Felelossegu TarsasagSCHEDULE 13D/A21.0%Passive
Feb 3, 2025Gulf Hungary Holding Korlatolt Felelossegu TarsasagSCHEDULE 13D/A21.1%Passive
Jan 29, 2025Gulf Hungary Holding Korlatolt Felelossegu TarsasagSCHEDULE 13D/A21.2%Passive
Jan 24, 2025Gulf Hungary Holding Korlatolt Felelossegu TarsasagSCHEDULE 13D/A21.3%Passive
Jan 21, 2025Gulf Hungary Holding Korlatolt Felelossegu TarsasagSCHEDULE 13D/A21.4%Passive

Insider trading

−$208Knet selling by insiders, open market, last 12 months
Bought $0 · 0 tradesSold $208K · 2 trades

Pay vs performance

No pay-versus-performance disclosure yet.