Congress Asset Management Co. MA Boosts Stock Position in Balchem Co. (NASDAQ:BCPC)

Congress Asset Management Co. MA boosted its holdings in shares of Balchem Co. (NASDAQ:BCPC) by 7.7% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 258,116 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after acquiring an additional 18,459 shares during the quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. MA owned 0.80% of Balchem worth $39,995,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. APG Asset Management US Inc. bought a new position in shares of Balchem during the 4th quarter worth $39,164,000. Heritage Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Balchem during the 4th quarter worth $226,000. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale grew its position in shares of Balchem by 71.0% during the 4th quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 51,300 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $7,662,000 after buying an additional 21,300 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in shares of Balchem by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 687,485 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $102,265,000 after buying an additional 11,629 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sei Investments Co. grew its position in shares of Balchem by 7.0% during the 3rd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 121,530 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $15,075,000 after buying an additional 7,973 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.91% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Balchem news, SVP Michael Robert Sestrick sold 1,929 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $154.45, for a total value of $297,934.05. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 4,878 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $753,407.10. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, SVP Michael Robert Sestrick sold 1,929 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $154.45, for a total value of $297,934.05. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 4,878 shares in the company, valued at $753,407.10. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director David B. Fischer sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $152.98, for a total value of $764,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 9,009 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,378,196.82. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.25% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Balchem Trading Up 0.8 %

Balchem stock opened at $151.60 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $150.48 and a two-hundred day moving average of $148.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 1.72 and a current ratio of 2.61. Balchem Co. has a one year low of $110.74 and a one year high of $159.52. The stock has a market cap of $4.91 billion, a PE ratio of 42.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.55 and a beta of 0.70.

Balchem (NASDAQ:BCPC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, May 3rd. The basic materials company reported $0.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.94 by ($0.05). Balchem had a return on equity of 11.03% and a net margin of 12.35%. The firm had revenue of $239.66 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $234.12 million. On average, research analysts anticipate that Balchem Co. will post 3.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on BCPC. StockNews.com raised Balchem from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 10th. HC Wainwright increased their price target on Balchem from $167.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, May 6th.

About Balchem

Balchem Corporation develops, manufactures, and markets specialty performance ingredients and products for the nutritional, food, pharmaceutical, animal health, medical device sterilization, plant nutrition, and industrial markets worldwide. It operates through three segments: Human Nutrition and Health, Animal Nutrition and Health, and Specialty Products.