GAMMA Investing LLC Invests $72,000 in Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI)

GAMMA Investing LLC bought a new position in shares of Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 1,080 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $72,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV raised its holdings in shares of Service Co. International by 204.1% in the fourth quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 599 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 402 shares in the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Service Co. International in the third quarter valued at about $36,000. M&R Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Service Co. International by 125.5% in the fourth quarter. M&R Capital Management Inc. now owns 902 shares of the company’s stock valued at $62,000 after acquiring an additional 502 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp raised its holdings in shares of Service Co. International by 45.4% in the third quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,224 shares of the company’s stock valued at $70,000 after acquiring an additional 382 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ bought a new stake in shares of Service Co. International in the third quarter valued at about $80,000. 85.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Service Co. International

In other news, VP Steven A. Tidwell sold 45,995 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.43, for a total transaction of $3,469,402.85. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 54,354 shares in the company, valued at $4,099,922.22. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, CEO Thomas L. Ryan sold 75,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.53, for a total value of $5,514,750.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 988,365 shares in the company, valued at $72,674,478.45. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, VP Steven A. Tidwell sold 45,995 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.43, for a total transaction of $3,469,402.85. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 54,354 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,099,922.22. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 202,675 shares of company stock worth $15,066,906. Insiders own 4.60% of the company’s stock.

Service Co. International Price Performance

SCI opened at $71.72 on Wednesday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $72.36 and its two-hundred day moving average is $67.06. Service Co. International has a 1 year low of $52.89 and a 1 year high of $75.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.02, a current ratio of 0.67 and a quick ratio of 0.62. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.51 billion, a PE ratio of 20.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 0.81.

Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 13th. The company reported $0.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.91 by $0.02. Service Co. International had a return on equity of 32.88% and a net margin of 13.11%. The company had revenue of $1.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.02 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.92 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Service Co. International will post 3.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Service Co. International Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 15th were paid a dividend of $0.30 per share. This is a positive change from Service Co. International’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.67%. Service Co. International’s payout ratio is presently 32.95%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on Service Co. International from $71.00 to $76.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 16th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Service Co. International from $72.00 to $79.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $75.00.

About Service Co. International

Service Corporation International provides deathcare products and services in the United States and Canada. Its funeral service and cemetery operations comprise funeral service locations, cemeteries, funeral service/cemetery combination locations, crematoria, and other businesses. The company also provides professional services related to funerals and cremations, including the use of funeral home facilities and motor vehicles; arranging and directing services; and removal, preparation, embalming, cremation, memorialization, and travel protection, as well as catering services.