Fox Run Management L.L.C. Takes Position in Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI)

Fox Run Management L.L.C. purchased a new position in Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 3,220 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $257,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS bought a new position in shares of Service Co. International in the fourth quarter worth approximately $2,786,000. Sei Investments Co. raised its holdings in Service Co. International by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 122,767 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,800,000 after acquiring an additional 3,359 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. raised its holdings in Service Co. International by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 34,464 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,751,000 after acquiring an additional 694 shares during the last quarter. Xponance Inc. lifted its position in Service Co. International by 4.6% in the 4th quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 17,808 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,421,000 after acquiring an additional 791 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Thrivent Financial for Lutherans boosted its stake in Service Co. International by 13.0% during the 4th quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 77,279 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,168,000 after purchasing an additional 8,915 shares during the last quarter. 85.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Service Co. International Price Performance

Shares of SCI opened at $80.19 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $11.56 billion, a PE ratio of 22.59, a P/E/G ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 0.90. Service Co. International has a 1-year low of $67.19 and a 1-year high of $89.37. The company has a current ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.83. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $78.85 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $80.20.

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 analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.06. Service Co. International had a return on equity of 32.18% and a net margin of 12.39%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Service Co. International will post 3.84 EPS for the current year.

Service Co. International Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a $0.32 dividend. This is an increase from Service Co. International’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.60%. Service Co. International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.06%.

Insider Activity at Service Co. International

In related news, Director Tony Coelho sold 6,500 shares of Service Co. International stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $79.29, for a total transaction of $515,385.00. Following the transaction, 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Thomas L. Ryan sold 50,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $84.56, for a total value of $4,228,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 982,333 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $83,066,078.48. This represents a 4.84 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 5.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SCI has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Oppenheimer boosted their price target on Service Co. International from $86.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. StockNews.com lowered Service Co. International from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $88.50.

About Service Co. International

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.