Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA Purchases New Holdings in NewMarket Corporation $NEU

Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA bought a new stake in NewMarket Corporation (NYSE:NEU) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 2,067 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,421,000.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of NEU. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in NewMarket by 196.7% in the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 137,943 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $114,246,000 after purchasing an additional 91,458 shares during the last quarter. Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec lifted its stake in NewMarket by 376.4% in the 3rd quarter. Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec now owns 99,256 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $82,205,000 after purchasing an additional 78,422 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in NewMarket by 112.4% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 67,633 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $56,014,000 after purchasing an additional 35,789 shares during the last quarter. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC lifted its stake in NewMarket by 748.6% in the 2nd quarter. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC now owns 30,523 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $21,087,000 after purchasing an additional 26,926 shares during the last quarter. Finally, HB Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in NewMarket by 643.3% in the 3rd quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 29,948 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $24,803,000 after purchasing an additional 25,919 shares during the last quarter. 61.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Weiss Ratings downgraded NewMarket from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Friday, March 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to MarketBeat, NewMarket currently has a consensus rating of “Hold”.

NewMarket Price Performance

Shares of NEU opened at $632.43 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.94 billion, a PE ratio of 14.24 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 2.53 and a quick ratio of 1.33. NewMarket Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $555.28 and a fifty-two week high of $875.97. The company’s 50-day moving average is $628.23 and its 200-day moving average is $701.19.

NewMarket (NYSE:NEU) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The specialty chemicals company reported $8.65 earnings per share for the quarter. The firm had revenue of $635.40 million for the quarter. NewMarket had a net margin of 15.37% and a return on equity of 25.38%.

NewMarket Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 16th were issued a $3.00 dividend. This represents a $12.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 16th. NewMarket’s dividend payout ratio is currently 27.01%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Ting Xu purchased 400 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $619.21 per share, with a total value of $247,684.00. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 929 shares in the company, valued at $575,246.09. The trade was a 75.61% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 8.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

NewMarket Company Profile

NewMarket Corporation is a specialty chemicals and lubricants company headquartered in Richmond, Virginia. Through its Valvoline business, the company markets a broad portfolio of automotive aftermarket products, including engine oils, transmission fluids, greases and vehicle care solutions. Valvoline products are distributed through retail and commercial channels as well as a network of quick-lube service centers that provide oil changes, preventive maintenance and related services.

In its chemical additives segment, NewMarket develops, manufactures and sells performance additives for fuels, lubricants and industrial fluids.