PNC Financial Services Group Inc. Raises Stock Holdings in Innospec Inc. (NASDAQ:IOSP)

PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Innospec Inc. (NASDAQ:IOSP) by 8.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,868 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after buying an additional 151 shares during the quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc.’s holdings in Innospec were worth $206,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in shares of Innospec by 54.2% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,201 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $136,000 after acquiring an additional 422 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV increased its stake in shares of Innospec by 82.3% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,236 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $136,000 after purchasing an additional 558 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Innospec by 91.9% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,802 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $198,000 after purchasing an additional 863 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. purchased a new position in shares of Innospec during the third quarter valued at approximately $215,000. Finally, Claro Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Innospec in the 4th quarter worth approximately $220,000. Institutional investors own 96.64% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, StockNews.com lowered Innospec from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, March 14th.

Innospec Price Performance

IOSP opened at $96.01 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $2.40 billion, a PE ratio of 67.61 and a beta of 1.08. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $106.94 and a 200-day moving average price of $110.88. Innospec Inc. has a 1 year low of $95.17 and a 1 year high of $133.71.

Innospec (NASDAQ:IOSP) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.36 by $0.05. Innospec had a net margin of 1.93% and a return on equity of 12.27%. The business had revenue of $466.80 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $447.43 million. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Innospec Inc. will post 6.18 EPS for the current year.

Innospec announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Monday, March 10th that authorizes the company to buyback $50.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the specialty chemicals company to purchase up to 2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Innospec news, Director Milton C. Blackmore sold 652 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.30, for a total value of $67,351.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 8,376 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $865,240.80. The trade was a 7.22 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Philip John Boon sold 3,754 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.30, for a total transaction of $387,788.20. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 20,079 shares in the company, valued at $2,074,160.70. This represents a 15.75 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 7,696 shares of company stock worth $794,853 in the last three months. Insiders own 1.52% of the company’s stock.

Innospec Company Profile

Innospec Inc develops, manufactures, blends, markets, and supplies specialty chemicals in the United States, rest of North America, the United Kingdom, rest of Europe, and internationally. The company's Fuel Specialties segment offers a range of specialty chemical products that are used as additives in additives in diesel, jet, marine, fuel oil and other fuels.