Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI) Shares Sold by HBK Sorce Advisory LLC

HBK Sorce Advisory LLC lowered its position in shares of Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI) by 7.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 15,076 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,189 shares during the quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC’s holdings in Service Co. International were worth $1,203,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of SCI. FMR LLC grew its position in shares of Service Co. International by 300.6% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 4,055,823 shares of the company’s stock valued at $320,126,000 after purchasing an additional 3,043,354 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Service Co. International by 5.1% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,211,902 shares of the company’s stock worth $253,567,000 after buying an additional 156,086 shares during the last quarter. Swedbank AB grew its holdings in Service Co. International by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 2,950,020 shares of the company’s stock valued at $235,471,000 after buying an additional 50,000 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in shares of Service Co. International by 8.9% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,459,377 shares of the company’s stock valued at $116,487,000 after acquiring an additional 118,832 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Premier Fund Managers Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of Service Co. International by 23.9% during the 3rd quarter. Premier Fund Managers Ltd now owns 1,093,723 shares of the company’s stock worth $85,721,000 after acquiring an additional 210,802 shares during the period. 85.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Service Co. International Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of SCI stock opened at $78.50 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.83. Service Co. International has a fifty-two week low of $67.19 and a fifty-two week high of $89.37. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $78.51 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $80.13. The stock has a market cap of $11.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 0.90.

Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $1.06 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.06. Service Co. International had a net margin of 12.39% and a return on equity of 32.18%. On average, analysts anticipate that Service Co. International will post 3.84 EPS for the current year.

Service Co. International Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.32 per share. This is an increase from Service Co. International’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.63%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. Service Co. International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.06%.

Insider Activity at Service Co. International

In other news, CEO Thomas L. Ryan sold 50,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $84.56, for a total transaction of $4,228,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 982,333 shares in the company, valued at $83,066,078.48. This trade represents a 4.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Tony Coelho sold 6,500 shares of Service Co. International stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $79.29, for a total value of $515,385.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 46,824 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,712,674.96. The trade was a 12.19 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 5.10% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently issued reports on SCI. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Service Co. International from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Oppenheimer lifted their price target on shares of Service Co. International from $86.00 to $92.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $88.50.

Service Co. International 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.