GAMMA Investing LLC Takes Position in Balchem Co. (NASDAQ:BCPC)

GAMMA Investing LLC acquired a new stake in Balchem Co. (NASDAQ:BCPC) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 401 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $56,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BCPC. Signaturefd LLC boosted its stake in Balchem by 123.0% during the fourth quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 165 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 91 shares during the period. Operose Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Balchem in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Allworth Financial LP raised its position in Balchem by 17.8% in the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 953 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $142,000 after purchasing an additional 144 shares during the period. Bill Few Associates Inc. acquired a new position in Balchem during the fourth quarter worth $212,000. Finally, Raymond James Trust N.A. purchased a new position in shares of Balchem during the fourth quarter worth $220,000. 87.91% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, StockNews.com lowered shares of Balchem from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 25th.

Insider Activity at Balchem

In other Balchem news, CAO William A. Backus sold 15,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $154.73, for a total transaction of $2,320,950.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 12,914 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,998,183.22. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, CAO William A. Backus sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $154.73, for a total value of $2,320,950.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 12,914 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,998,183.22. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CAO William A. Backus sold 9,180 shares of Balchem stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.37, for a total value of $1,435,476.60. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 12,914 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,019,362.18. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 76,630 shares of company stock valued at $11,843,249 over the last 90 days. 1.77% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Balchem Stock Performance

NASDAQ:BCPC opened at $143.82 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $4.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.71. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $151.33 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $140.37. Balchem Co. has a 52 week low of $110.74 and a 52 week high of $159.52. The company has a quick ratio of 1.38, a current ratio of 2.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31.

Balchem (NASDAQ:BCPC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 16th. The basic materials company reported $0.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.93 by $0.02. Balchem had a return on equity of 10.69% and a net margin of 11.77%. The company had revenue of $228.70 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $234.66 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.66 EPS. Balchem’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Balchem Co. will post 4.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Balchem Company Profile

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.