Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. Sells 3,086 Shares of Balchem Co. (NASDAQ:BCPC)

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. trimmed its holdings in Balchem Co. (NASDAQ:BCPC) by 21.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 11,050 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 3,086 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc.’s holdings in Balchem were worth $1,801,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. State Street Corp grew its position in Balchem by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,234,226 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $217,224,000 after acquiring an additional 12,006 shares during the last quarter. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC increased its stake in Balchem by 1.8% in the third quarter. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,175,569 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $206,900,000 after purchasing an additional 20,360 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Balchem by 3.1% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 928,904 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $163,514,000 after purchasing an additional 27,979 shares during the period. Geneva Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Balchem by 1.7% in the third quarter. Geneva Capital Management LLC now owns 779,869 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $137,257,000 after purchasing an additional 12,750 shares during the period. Finally, FMR LLC increased its stake in Balchem by 944.3% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 497,495 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $87,559,000 after purchasing an additional 449,854 shares during the period. 87.91% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Balchem Stock Performance

Shares of Balchem stock opened at $163.14 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $5.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 43.85, a P/E/G ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.69. The company has a current ratio of 2.98, a quick ratio of 1.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. Balchem Co. has a 12 month low of $137.69 and a 12 month high of $186.03. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $163.97 and its 200-day moving average price is $169.81.

Balchem Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced an annual dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 17th. Investors of record on Thursday, December 26th were issued a dividend of $0.87 per share. This is an increase from Balchem’s previous annual dividend of $0.79. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, December 26th. This represents a dividend yield of 0.4%. Balchem’s payout ratio is 23.39%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have weighed in on BCPC shares. StockNews.com upgraded Balchem from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, October 28th. HC Wainwright increased their target price on Balchem from $185.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th.

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.