Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC Purchases New Position in Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI)

Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 2,428 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $173,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Swedbank AB acquired a new position in shares of Service Co. International during the 1st quarter worth approximately $224,137,000. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Service Co. International during the fourth quarter worth $92,331,000. GW&K Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Service Co. International during the fourth quarter valued at $22,890,000. Jennison Associates LLC grew its position in shares of Service Co. International by 430.3% in the first quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 357,075 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,499,000 after purchasing an additional 289,741 shares during the period. Finally, Corient Private Wealth LLC increased its stake in shares of Service Co. International by 2,178.3% during the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 234,484 shares of the company’s stock worth $16,050,000 after purchasing an additional 224,192 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.53% of the company’s stock.

Service Co. International Price Performance

SCI stock opened at $80.00 on Friday. Service Co. International has a 1 year low of $52.89 and a 1 year high of $80.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.05, a current ratio of 0.55 and a quick ratio of 0.51. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.65 billion, a PE ratio of 22.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 0.84. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $75.39 and a 200-day simple moving average of $72.97.

Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The company reported $0.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.86 by ($0.07). Service Co. International had a net margin of 12.32% and a return on equity of 32.07%. The company had revenue of $1.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.03 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.83 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Service Co. International will post 3.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Service Co. International Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.50%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 13th. Service Co. International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 34.48%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on SCI shares. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Service Co. International from $83.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 17th. StockNews.com lowered Service Co. International from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Truist Financial increased their price objective on Service Co. International from $80.00 to $84.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, June 21st. Finally, Oppenheimer lifted their target price on shares of Service Co. International from $76.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $77.60.

Insider Buying and Selling at Service Co. International

In other news, Director Ellen Ochoa sold 2,642 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.41, for a total transaction of $201,875.22. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other news, Director Ellen Ochoa sold 2,642 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.41, for a total transaction of $201,875.22. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Thomas L. Ryan sold 80,638 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.97, for a total transaction of $5,964,792.86. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 988,365 shares in the company, valued at $73,109,359.05. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 5.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Service Co. International Company Profile

Service Corporation International provides deathcare products and services in the United States and Canada. Its funeral service and cemetery operations comprise funeral service locations, cemeteries, funeral service/cemetery combination locations, crematoria, and other businesses. The company also provides professional services related to funerals and cremations, including the use of funeral home facilities and motor vehicles; arranging and directing services; and removal, preparation, embalming, cremation, memorialization, and travel protection, as well as catering services.