New York State Teachers Retirement System Sells 1,000 Shares of Balchem Co. (NASDAQ:BCPC)

New York State Teachers Retirement System lowered its holdings in Balchem Co. (NASDAQ:BCPC) by 1.9% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 51,799 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 1,000 shares during the period. New York State Teachers Retirement System’s holdings in Balchem were worth $7,974,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Balchem by 3.8% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,935,935 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $609,873,000 after buying an additional 144,423 shares during the period. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Balchem by 3.9% during the 1st quarter. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,125,384 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $174,378,000 after purchasing an additional 42,172 shares during the last quarter. Geneva Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Balchem by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Geneva Capital Management LLC now owns 767,211 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $114,123,000 after purchasing an additional 3,885 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in Balchem by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 687,485 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $102,265,000 after purchasing an additional 11,629 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Clearbridge Investments LLC grew its holdings in Balchem by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 521,590 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $77,587,000 after purchasing an additional 2,801 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 87.91% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. HC Wainwright boosted their target price on Balchem from $170.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. StockNews.com cut Balchem from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th.

Balchem Stock Performance

Shares of BCPC stock opened at $172.74 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $165.26 and its 200 day moving average is $156.32. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 48.80, a PEG ratio of 5.63 and a beta of 0.68. Balchem Co. has a 12 month low of $110.74 and a 12 month high of $186.03. The company has a current ratio of 2.83, a quick ratio of 1.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26.

Balchem (NASDAQ:BCPC) last issued its earnings results on Friday, July 26th. The basic materials company reported $0.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.95 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $234.08 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $241.26 million. Balchem had a net margin of 12.52% and a return on equity of 10.94%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Balchem Co. will post 3.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Balchem news, SVP Gunsteren Job Leonard Van sold 7,750 shares of Balchem stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $180.05, for a total transaction of $1,395,387.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 8,540 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,537,627. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 1.25% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Balchem Company Profile

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.