Amundi Boosts Stock Holdings in Balchem Co. (NASDAQ:BCPC)

Amundi lifted its stake in shares of Balchem Co. (NASDAQ:BCPC) by 151.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 19,096 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after acquiring an additional 11,496 shares during the quarter. Amundi’s holdings in Balchem were worth $3,000,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Watts Gwilliam & Co. LLC increased its position in shares of Balchem by 63.7% during the fourth quarter. Watts Gwilliam & Co. LLC now owns 35,069 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $5,438,000 after acquiring an additional 13,642 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its position in shares of Balchem by 1.7% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 458,986 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $80,782,000 after acquiring an additional 7,721 shares during the period. Stifel Financial Corp increased its position in shares of Balchem by 26.2% during the third quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 11,893 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,093,000 after acquiring an additional 2,467 shares during the period. Apollon Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Balchem during the fourth quarter worth $503,000. Finally, Congress Asset Management Co. increased its holdings in Balchem by 5.4% in the fourth quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 317,610 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $51,769,000 after buying an additional 16,170 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.91% of the company’s stock.

Balchem Stock Performance

NASDAQ:BCPC opened at $167.72 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a current ratio of 1.99 and a quick ratio of 1.16. Balchem Co. has a 12 month low of $137.69 and a 12 month high of $186.03. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.46 billion, a PE ratio of 42.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.41 and a beta of 0.63. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $163.84 and its 200 day moving average price is $169.73.

Balchem (NASDAQ:BCPC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 21st. The basic materials company reported $1.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.11 by ($0.08). Balchem had a net margin of 13.47% and a return on equity of 11.37%. The company had revenue of $240.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $239.96 million. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Balchem Co. will post 4.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BCPC has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $190.00 target price on shares of Balchem in a report on Monday, February 24th. StockNews.com lowered Balchem from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, Sidoti raised Balchem to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th.

Balchem Profile

Balchem Corporation develops, manufactures, and markets specialty performance ingredients and products for the nutritional, food, pharmaceutical, animal health, medical device sterilization, plant nutrition, and industrial markets worldwide. It operates through three segments: Human Nutrition and Health, Animal Nutrition and Health, and Specialty Products.