Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI) Stock Position Reduced by 2Xideas AG

2Xideas AG lessened its holdings in shares of Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI) by 72.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 30,060 shares of the company’s stock after selling 77,811 shares during the period. 2Xideas AG’s holdings in Service Co. International were worth $2,399,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. M&T Bank Corp grew its position in shares of Service Co. International by 1.1% during the third quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 11,248 shares of the company’s stock worth $888,000 after acquiring an additional 123 shares during the last quarter. Cornerstone Investment Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Service Co. International by 3.8% in the fourth quarter. Cornerstone Investment Partners LLC now owns 3,587 shares of the company’s stock worth $286,000 after purchasing an additional 131 shares during the period. CIBC Asset Management Inc boosted its holdings in shares of Service Co. International by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 5,167 shares of the company’s stock valued at $412,000 after acquiring an additional 138 shares in the last quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC boosted its stake in Service Co. International by 5.0% during the 4th quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 4,438 shares of the company’s stock valued at $354,000 after purchasing an additional 212 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Stanley Laman Group Ltd. grew its holdings in Service Co. International by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Stanley Laman Group Ltd. now owns 40,098 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,201,000 after acquiring an additional 214 shares during the period. 85.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Service Co. International Trading Down 5.3 %

Service Co. International stock opened at $77.06 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 12 month low of $67.19 and a 12 month high of $89.37. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $79.19 and its 200-day simple moving average is $80.22. The stock has a market cap of $11.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.71, a P/E/G ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 0.81.

Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI) last released its quarterly 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 net margin of 12.39% and a return on equity of 32.18%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Service Co. International will post 3.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Service Co. International Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th were given a $0.32 dividend. This is a positive change from Service Co. International’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.66%. Service Co. International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.06%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have issued reports on SCI. Oppenheimer lifted their price target on shares of Service Co. International from $86.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. StockNews.com upgraded Service Co. International from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Service Co. International currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $88.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Service Co. International news, CEO Thomas L. Ryan sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 completion of 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Tony Coelho sold 6,500 shares of the firm’s 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 completion of the sale, the director now owns 46,824 shares in the company, valued at $3,712,674.96. This represents 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.

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.