Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI) Shares Sold by Sepio Capital LP

Sepio Capital LP lessened its stake in Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI) by 2.5% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 8,193 shares of the company’s stock after selling 211 shares during the period. Sepio Capital LP’s holdings in Service Co. International were worth $654,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. M&T Bank Corp boosted its stake in shares of Service Co. International by 1.1% in the third quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 11,248 shares of the company’s stock valued at $888,000 after purchasing an additional 123 shares during the period. Cornerstone Investment Partners LLC boosted its position in Service Co. International by 3.8% in the 4th quarter. Cornerstone Investment Partners LLC now owns 3,587 shares of the company’s stock valued at $286,000 after buying an additional 131 shares during the period. CIBC Asset Management Inc grew its stake in shares of Service Co. International by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 5,167 shares of the company’s stock worth $412,000 after acquiring an additional 138 shares in the last quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC grew its stake in shares of Service Co. International by 5.0% in the fourth quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 4,438 shares of the company’s stock worth $354,000 after acquiring an additional 212 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Stanley Laman Group Ltd. increased its position in shares of Service Co. International by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Stanley Laman Group Ltd. now owns 40,098 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,201,000 after acquiring an additional 214 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.53% of the company’s stock.

Service Co. International Stock Performance

Shares of SCI stock opened at $77.06 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $11.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.71, a PEG ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 0.81. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $79.19 and a 200 day moving average price of $80.22. The company has a current ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.83. Service Co. International has a 12 month low of $67.19 and a 12 month high of $89.37.

Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $1.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.06. Service Co. International had a return on equity of 32.18% and a net margin of 12.39%. Sell-side analysts predict that Service Co. International will post 3.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Service Co. International Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th were issued a dividend of $0.32 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.66%. This is a boost from Service Co. International’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. Service Co. International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.06%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on SCI shares. StockNews.com upgraded Service Co. International from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday. Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on 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 investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Service Co. International has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $88.50.

Insider Transactions at Service Co. International

In other news, Director Tony Coelho sold 6,500 shares of Service Co. International 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 approximately $3,712,674.96. The trade was a 12.19 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Thomas L. Ryan sold 50,000 shares of the business’s 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 sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 982,333 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $83,066,078.48. The trade was a 4.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 5.10% of the company’s stock.

Service Co. International 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.