Innospec Inc. (NASDAQ:IOSP) Stake Trimmed by Prudential Financial Inc.

Prudential Financial Inc. cut its position in shares of Innospec Inc. (NASDAQ:IOSP) by 1.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 25,369 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 332 shares during the quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. owned 0.10% of Innospec worth $3,020,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Blue Trust Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Innospec by 54.2% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,201 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $136,000 after acquiring an additional 422 shares during the period. KBC Group NV raised its stake in Innospec by 82.3% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,236 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $136,000 after purchasing an additional 558 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Innospec by 91.9% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,802 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $198,000 after purchasing an additional 863 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Innospec by 8.8% in the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 1,868 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $206,000 after purchasing an additional 151 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Point72 Asset Management L.P. acquired a new stake in shares of Innospec in the third quarter worth $215,000. 96.64% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Innospec Price Performance

NASDAQ IOSP opened at $95.65 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 67.36 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $104.24 and a 200-day simple moving average of $110.26. Innospec Inc. has a 52-week low of $93.22 and a 52-week high of $133.71.

Innospec (NASDAQ:IOSP) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.36 by $0.05. Innospec had a net margin of 1.93% and a return on equity of 12.27%. The company had revenue of $466.80 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $447.43 million. On average, analysts predict that Innospec Inc. will post 6.18 EPS for the current year.

Innospec declared that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Monday, March 10th that allows the company to buyback $50.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the specialty chemicals company to reacquire up to 2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity at Innospec

In related news, SVP Corbin Barnes sold 598 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.06, for a total value of $61,629.88. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 8,051 shares in the company, valued at approximately $829,736.06. This represents a 6.91 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Philip John Boon sold 3,754 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.30, for a total transaction of $387,788.20. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 20,079 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,074,160.70. The trade was a 15.75 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 7,696 shares of company stock valued at $794,853. Insiders own 1.52% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, StockNews.com lowered Innospec from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday.

Innospec Company Profile

Innospec Inc develops, manufactures, blends, markets, and supplies specialty chemicals in the United States, rest of North America, the United Kingdom, rest of Europe, and internationally. The company's Fuel Specialties segment offers a range of specialty chemical products that are used as additives in additives in diesel, jet, marine, fuel oil and other fuels.