Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC Increases Position in Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI)

Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC increased its position in Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI) by 5.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 4,438 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 212 shares during the period. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC’s holdings in Service Co. International were worth $354,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. M&T Bank Corp raised its holdings 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 valued at $888,000 after buying an additional 123 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc grew its position in Service Co. International by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 5,167 shares of the company’s stock worth $412,000 after purchasing an additional 138 shares in the last quarter. Stanley Laman Group Ltd. grew its position in Service Co. International by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Stanley Laman Group Ltd. now owns 40,098 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,201,000 after purchasing an additional 214 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Service Co. International by 20.1% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,397 shares of the company’s stock valued at $110,000 after acquiring an additional 234 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Service Co. International by 13.9% during the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 1,936 shares of the company’s stock valued at $155,000 after acquiring an additional 236 shares in the last quarter. 85.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Service Co. International Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE SCI opened at $78.50 on Friday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $78.51 and its 200-day moving average is $80.13. The stock has a market cap of $11.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.11, a P/E/G ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 0.90. Service Co. International has a twelve month low of $67.19 and a twelve month high of $89.37. 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 (NYSE:SCI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $1.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.06. Service Co. International had a net margin of 12.39% and a return on equity of 32.18%. Equities research analysts predict that Service Co. International will post 3.84 EPS for the current year.

Service Co. International Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.63%. This is a positive change from Service Co. International’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. Service Co. International’s dividend payout ratio is 36.06%.

Insider Activity at Service Co. International

In related news, CEO Thomas L. Ryan sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now 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 stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $79.29, for a total transaction of $515,385.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 46,824 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,712,674.96. The trade was a 12.19 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 5.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SCI has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Oppenheimer upped their price objective on shares of Service Co. International from $86.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Service Co. International from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $88.50.

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.