Bahl & Gaynor Inc. Reduces Holdings in Innospec Inc. (NASDAQ:IOSP)

Bahl & Gaynor Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of Innospec Inc. (NASDAQ:IOSP) by 5.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 35,956 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 1,944 shares during the period. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. owned about 0.14% of Innospec worth $3,957,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. HighTower Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Innospec by 5.2% during the 3rd quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 3,103 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $350,000 after purchasing an additional 154 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. grew its stake in Innospec by 7.9% in the 3rd quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 2,106 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $238,000 after acquiring an additional 155 shares during the period. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans grew its stake in Innospec by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 59,602 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $6,740,000 after acquiring an additional 195 shares during the period. New York State Teachers Retirement System grew its stake in Innospec by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System now owns 14,981 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $1,649,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the period. Finally, Hudson Edge Investment Partners Inc. grew its stake in Innospec by 4.9% in the 4th quarter. Hudson Edge Investment Partners Inc. now owns 4,923 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $542,000 after acquiring an additional 230 shares during the period. 96.64% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Innospec Stock Performance

IOSP stock opened at $97.77 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 68.85 and a beta of 1.09. Innospec Inc. has a one year low of $97.24 and a one year high of $133.71. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $109.86 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $112.25.

Innospec (NASDAQ:IOSP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 18th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.36 by $0.05. Innospec had a net margin of 1.93% and a return on equity of 12.27%. The company had revenue of $466.80 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $447.43 million. Research analysts forecast that Innospec Inc. will post 6.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, StockNews.com cut shares of Innospec from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Milton C. Blackmore sold 652 shares of Innospec stock in a transaction on Friday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.30, for a total transaction of $67,351.60. Following the transaction, the director now owns 8,376 shares in the company, valued at approximately $865,240.80. The trade was a 7.22 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Corbin Barnes sold 598 shares of Innospec stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.06, for a total transaction of $61,629.88. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 8,051 shares in the company, valued at $829,736.06. The trade was a 6.91 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 7,696 shares of company stock valued at $794,853 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 1.52% of the company’s stock.

About Innospec

Innospec Inc develops, manufactures, blends, markets, and supplies specialty chemicals in the United States, rest of North America, the United Kingdom, rest of Europe, and internationally. The company's Fuel Specialties segment offers a range of specialty chemical products that are used as additives in additives in diesel, jet, marine, fuel oil and other fuels.