Quadrant Capital Group LLC Grows Stake in Balchem Co. (NASDAQ:BCPC)

Quadrant Capital Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Balchem Co. (NASDAQ:BCPC) by 8.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 989 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the period. Quadrant Capital Group LLC’s holdings in Balchem were worth $161,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of BCPC. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Balchem during the fourth quarter worth about $70,165,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Balchem during the 4th quarter valued at about $23,628,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Balchem during the 4th quarter valued at about $13,359,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its stake in Balchem by 11.0% during the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 509,490 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $83,044,000 after acquiring an additional 50,504 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC grew its stake in Balchem by 405.8% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 60,777 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $10,695,000 after acquiring an additional 48,762 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.91% of the company’s stock.

Balchem Stock Performance

NASDAQ:BCPC opened at $159.64 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a current ratio of 1.99 and a quick ratio of 1.16. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.62, a PEG ratio of 4.41 and a beta of 0.75. The company’s 50-day moving average is $164.93 and its two-hundred day moving average is $168.32. Balchem Co. has a 1-year low of $137.69 and a 1-year high of $186.03.

Balchem (NASDAQ:BCPC) last posted its earnings results on Friday, February 21st. The basic materials company reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.11 by ($0.08). The firm had revenue of $240.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $239.96 million. Balchem had a net margin of 13.47% and a return on equity of 11.37%. Analysts forecast that Balchem Co. will post 4.64 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently issued reports on BCPC. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $190.00 price objective on shares of Balchem in a research note on Monday, February 24th. Sidoti raised shares of Balchem to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Balchem from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th.

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.