Victory Capital Management Inc. Increases Position in Balchem Co. (NASDAQ:BCPC)

Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Balchem Co. (NASDAQ:BCPC) by 4.3% during the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 43,031 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,788 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Balchem were worth $6,625,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BCPC. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Balchem by 1.5% during the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 3,926 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $604,000 after acquiring an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in Balchem by 18.0% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 473 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $73,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares in the last quarter. Pitcairn Co. grew its holdings in Balchem by 3.6% in the first quarter. Pitcairn Co. now owns 3,315 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $514,000 after purchasing an additional 115 shares during the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its stake in shares of Balchem by 2.5% during the 2nd quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 7,278 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,120,000 after buying an additional 177 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Annex Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in shares of Balchem by 4.8% in the 1st quarter. Annex Advisory Services LLC now owns 3,967 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $615,000 after buying an additional 182 shares in the last quarter. 87.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Balchem

In related news, SVP Gunsteren Job Leonard Van sold 7,750 shares of the 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 transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 8,540 shares in the company, valued at $1,537,627. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 1.25% of the company’s stock.

Balchem Price Performance

NASDAQ:BCPC opened at $171.82 on Monday. Balchem Co. has a 12-month low of $110.74 and a 12-month high of $186.03. The firm has a market cap of $5.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 48.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.18 and a beta of 0.65. The company’s 50-day moving average is $170.34 and its two-hundred day moving average is $158.62. 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 announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 26th. The basic materials company reported $0.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.95 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $234.08 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $241.26 million. Balchem had a net margin of 12.52% and a return on equity of 10.94%. Research analysts expect that Balchem Co. will post 3.96 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have issued reports on BCPC. HC Wainwright lifted their target price on shares of Balchem from $170.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. StockNews.com cut Balchem from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, July 29th.

Balchem 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.