Arizona State Retirement System Cuts Stake in Balchem Corporation (NASDAQ:BCPC)

Arizona State Retirement System reduced its holdings in shares of Balchem Corporation (NASDAQ:BCPC) by 1.1% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 9,309 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 104 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System’s holdings in Balchem were worth $1,545,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Quadrant Capital Group LLC increased its stake in Balchem by 8.2% during the 4th quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 989 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $161,000 after buying an additional 75 shares during the period. Covestor Ltd increased its stake in Balchem by 93.8% during the 4th quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 157 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 76 shares during the period. Vident Advisory LLC increased its stake in Balchem by 6.0% during the 4th quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 1,421 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $232,000 after buying an additional 80 shares during the period. Heritage Family Offices LLP increased its stake in Balchem by 5.9% during the 1st quarter. Heritage Family Offices LLP now owns 1,504 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $250,000 after buying an additional 84 shares during the period. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp increased its stake in Balchem by 2.2% during the 4th quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 3,840 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $626,000 after buying an additional 84 shares during the period. 87.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Balchem Trading Down 3.5%

Shares of NASDAQ:BCPC opened at $152.84 on Friday. Balchem Corporation has a 52 week low of $145.70 and a 52 week high of $186.03. The company’s 50 day moving average is $163.15 and its two-hundred day moving average is $162.65. The company has a current ratio of 2.44, a quick ratio of 1.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. The company has a market cap of $4.99 billion, a PE ratio of 36.65, a P/E/G ratio of 3.42 and a beta of 0.89.

Balchem (NASDAQ:BCPC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The basic materials company reported $1.22 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.25 by ($0.03). Balchem had a net margin of 14.16% and a return on equity of 12.01%. The firm had revenue of $250.52 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $245.70 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.03 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Balchem Corporation will post 4.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

BCPC has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. HC Wainwright set a $180.00 price objective on shares of Balchem and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Balchem from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st.

About Balchem

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.