Ameriprise Financial Inc. Sells 499,243 Shares of Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI)

Ameriprise Financial Inc. lessened its holdings in Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI) by 64.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 278,720 shares of the company’s stock after selling 499,243 shares during the quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. owned approximately 0.19% of Service Co. International worth $22,247,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Service Co. International during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Quarry LP increased its position in Service Co. International by 359.8% during the 4th quarter. Quarry LP now owns 469 shares of the company’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 367 shares during the period. Mizuho Bank Ltd. acquired a new stake in Service Co. International during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Service Co. International during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Finally, Vision Financial Markets LLC acquired a new stake in Service Co. International during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $52,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.53% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Service Co. International

In related news, Director Tony Coelho sold 5,400 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.94, for a total value of $410,076.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 43,938 shares in the company, valued at $3,336,651.72. This trade represents a 10.94% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Thomas L. Ryan sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $84.56, for a total value of $4,228,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 982,333 shares in the company, valued at approximately $83,066,078.48. This represents a 4.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 61,900 shares of company stock valued at $5,153,461 in the last quarter. 4.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Service Co. International Stock Performance

Shares of SCI stock opened at $75.22 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $10.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 0.96. Service Co. International has a 52 week low of $68.51 and a 52 week high of $89.37. The company has a quick ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.83. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $78.01 and a 200-day moving average of $80.19.

Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The company reported $0.96 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.91 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $1.07 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.06 billion. Service Co. International had a net margin of 12.39% and a return on equity of 32.18%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.89 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Service Co. International will post 3.84 earnings per share for the current year.

Service Co. International Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 13th will be given a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.70%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 13th. Service Co. International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 35.16%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have weighed in on SCI shares. UBS Group decreased their target price on shares of Service Co. International from $90.00 to $88.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. StockNews.com raised shares of Service Co. International from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Service Co. International presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $89.25.

Service Co. International Company Profile

Service Corp. International engages in the provision of funeral goods and services. It operates through the Funeral and Cemetery segments. The Funeral segment offers services related to cremations, including the use of home facilities and motor vehicles, arranging and directing services, removal, preparation, embalming, memorialization, and catering.