Raymond James Financial Inc. Takes $1.61 Million Position in NewMarket Co. (NYSE:NEU)

Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in NewMarket Co. (NYSE:NEU) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 3,054 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,613,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of NewMarket in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Centricity Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of NewMarket during the 4th quarter valued at $56,000. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of NewMarket by 55.3% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 118 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $65,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in NewMarket in the fourth quarter worth $74,000. Finally, Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC increased its stake in NewMarket by 481.5% in the fourth quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 157 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $83,000 after acquiring an additional 130 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 61.09% of the company’s stock.

NewMarket Stock Performance

NYSE:NEU opened at $565.86 on Wednesday. NewMarket Co. has a 1-year low of $480.00 and a 1-year high of $632.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 2.75 and a quick ratio of 1.40. The business has a 50 day moving average of $535.25 and a 200 day moving average of $532.94. The company has a market capitalization of $5.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.74 and a beta of 0.41.

NewMarket (NYSE:NEU) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 3rd. The specialty chemicals company reported $11.56 earnings per share for the quarter. NewMarket had a net margin of 16.59% and a return on equity of 35.48%.

NewMarket Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th were paid a dividend of $2.75 per share. This is a boost from NewMarket’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.50. This represents a $11.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.94%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 17th. NewMarket’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 22.82%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, StockNews.com lowered NewMarket from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th.

NewMarket Profile

NewMarket Corporation, through its subsidiaries, primarily engages in the manufacture and sale of petroleum additives. The company offers lubricant additives for use in various vehicle and industrial applications, including engine oils, transmission fluids, off-road powertrain and hydraulic systems, gear oils, hydraulic oils, turbine oils, and other applications where metal-to-metal moving parts are utilized; engine oil additives designed for passenger cars, motorcycles, on and off-road heavy duty commercial equipment, locomotives, and engines in ocean-going vessels; driveline additives designed for products, such as transmission fluids, axle fluids, and off-road powertrain fluids; and industrial additives designed for products for industrial applications consisting of hydraulic fluids, grease, industrial gear fluids, and industrial specialty applications, such as turbine oils.