Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. Boosts Stock Position in Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI)

Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. raised its holdings in Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI) by 1.7% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 15,081 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 245 shares during the period. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc.’s holdings in Service Co. International were worth $1,204,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Swedbank AB boosted its stake in Service Co. International by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 2,900,020 shares of the company’s stock valued at $228,899,000 after acquiring an additional 55,000 shares during the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans raised its stake in shares of Service Co. International by 23.9% in the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 68,364 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,396,000 after purchasing an additional 13,209 shares in the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Service Co. International by 110,300.0% during the third quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 1,104 shares of the company’s stock worth $87,000 after purchasing an additional 1,103 shares during the last quarter. Prospera Financial Services Inc grew its stake in Service Co. International by 26.1% in the third quarter. Prospera Financial Services Inc now owns 5,221 shares of the company’s stock worth $412,000 after purchasing an additional 1,081 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Commerce Bank increased its holdings in Service Co. International by 16.3% in the third quarter. Commerce Bank now owns 8,897 shares of the company’s stock valued at $702,000 after buying an additional 1,248 shares during the last quarter. 85.53% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Thomas L. Ryan sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $84.56, for a total value of $4,228,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 982,333 shares in the company, valued at $83,066,078.48. This represents a 4.84 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Tony Coelho sold 6,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $79.29, for a total transaction of $515,385.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 46,824 shares in the company, valued at $3,712,674.96. This trade represents a 12.19 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 4.60% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. StockNews.com upgraded Service Co. International from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. Oppenheimer boosted their target price on shares of Service Co. International from $86.00 to $92.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $88.50.

Service Co. International Trading Down 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE SCI opened at $78.12 on Friday. Service Co. International has a 12-month low of $67.19 and a 12-month high of $89.37. The company has a market cap of $11.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a current ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.83. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $78.63 and its 200 day simple moving average is $80.18.

Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $1.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.06. Service Co. International had a net margin of 12.39% and a return on equity of 32.18%. Equities research analysts expect that Service Co. International will post 3.84 EPS for the current year.

Service Co. International Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.64%. This is a positive change from Service Co. International’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. Service Co. International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.06%.

Service Co. International Company Profile

Service Corp. International engages in the provision of funeral goods and services. It operates through the Funeral and Cemetery segments. The Funeral segment offers services related to cremations, including the use of home facilities and motor vehicles, arranging and directing services, removal, preparation, embalming, memorialization, and catering.