Natixis Advisors L.P. Has $15.25 Million Position in Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI)

Natixis Advisors L.P. boosted its holdings in shares of Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI) by 55.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 222,819 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 79,378 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors L.P. owned 0.15% of Service Co. International worth $15,251,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in SCI. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV grew its stake in shares of Service Co. International by 204.1% during the fourth quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 599 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 402 shares during the period. Larson Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Service Co. International during the 3rd quarter worth about $36,000. M&R Capital Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Service Co. International by 125.5% during the 4th quarter. M&R Capital Management Inc. now owns 902 shares of the company’s stock worth $62,000 after buying an additional 502 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC bought a new stake in shares of Service Co. International in the 4th quarter valued at about $72,000. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp raised its position in shares of Service Co. International by 45.4% in the 3rd quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,224 shares of the company’s stock valued at $70,000 after acquiring an additional 382 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 85.53% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Steven A. Tidwell sold 45,995 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.43, for a total value of $3,469,402.85. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 54,354 shares in the company, valued at $4,099,922.22. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, Director Victor L. Lund sold 7,606 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, April 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.00, for a total transaction of $532,420.00. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Steven A. Tidwell sold 45,995 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.43, for a total transaction of $3,469,402.85. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 54,354 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,099,922.22. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 211,292 shares of company stock worth $15,670,096. Corporate insiders own 4.60% of the company’s stock.

Service Co. International Price Performance

Shares of SCI opened at $68.09 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $72.14 and a 200 day simple moving average of $67.44. Service Co. International has a 52-week low of $52.89 and a 52-week high of $75.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.90, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a current ratio of 0.62. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.91 billion, a PE ratio of 19.57, a P/E/G ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 0.81.

Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The company reported $0.89 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.85 by $0.04. Service Co. International had a net margin of 12.73% and a return on equity of 32.23%. The firm had revenue of $1.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.02 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.93 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Service Co. International will post 3.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Service Co. International Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 15th were issued a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.76%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. This is a boost from Service Co. International’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. Service Co. International’s dividend payout ratio is 33.33%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on SCI. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Service Co. International from $72.00 to $79.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 14th. Oppenheimer boosted their price target on shares of Service Co. International from $71.00 to $76.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Service Co. International currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $75.00.

Service Co. International Company Profile

Service Corporation International provides deathcare products and services in the United States and Canada. Its funeral service and cemetery operations comprise funeral service locations, cemeteries, funeral service/cemetery combination locations, crematoria, and other businesses. The company also provides professional services related to funerals and cremations, including the use of funeral home facilities and motor vehicles; arranging and directing services; and removal, preparation, embalming, cremation, memorialization, and travel protection, as well as catering services.