Procyon Advisors LLC Buys 1,211 Shares of Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI)

Procyon Advisors LLC raised its stake in Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI) by 13.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 10,376 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,211 shares during the period. Procyon Advisors LLC’s holdings in Service Co. International were worth $710,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of SCI. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Service Co. International by 10.2% in the 1st quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 11,544 shares of the company’s stock valued at $760,000 after purchasing an additional 1,068 shares during the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Service Co. International by 15.6% during the 1st quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 6,840 shares of the company’s stock worth $448,000 after acquiring an additional 922 shares during the last quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC raised its holdings in Service Co. International by 2.2% during the 1st quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 8,269 shares of the company’s stock worth $544,000 after buying an additional 181 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can raised its holdings in shares of Service Co. International by 38.1% in the first quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 32,245 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,135,000 after purchasing an additional 8,901 shares during the last quarter. Finally, APG Asset Management N.V. raised its holdings in shares of Service Co. International by 30.1% in the first quarter. APG Asset Management N.V. now owns 17,700 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,047,000 after purchasing an additional 4,100 shares during the last quarter. 85.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Service Co. International Trading Up 0.2 %

SCI stock traded up $0.18 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $74.40. The company had a trading volume of 74,212 shares, compared to its average volume of 847,763. The company has a current ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.02. Service Co. International has a 52 week low of $52.89 and a 52 week high of $75.97. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $71.14 and its 200 day moving average price is $64.71. The stock has a market cap of $10.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.09, a PEG ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 0.81.

Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 13th. The company reported $0.93 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.91 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $1.06 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.02 billion. Service Co. International had a return on equity of 32.88% and a net margin of 13.11%. The business’s revenue was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.92 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Service Co. International will post 3.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Service Co. International Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 15th will be given a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 14th. This is a boost from Service Co. International’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.61%. Service Co. International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 32.95%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on shares of Service Co. International from $71.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 16th. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Service Co. International from $72.00 to $79.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $75.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Service Co. International

In related news, VP Steven A. Tidwell sold 45,995 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.43, for a total transaction of $3,469,402.85. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 54,354 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,099,922.22. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Service Co. International news, Director W Blair Waltrip sold 6,150 shares of Service Co. International stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.38, for a total transaction of $457,437.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 597,948 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $44,475,372.24. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Steven A. Tidwell sold 45,995 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.43, for a total value of $3,469,402.85. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 54,354 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,099,922.22. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 202,675 shares of company stock valued at $15,066,906. 5.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Service Co. International

Service Corporation International provides deathcare products and services in the United States and Canada. Its funeral service and cemetery operations comprise funeral service locations, cemeteries, funeral service/cemetery combination locations, crematoria, and other businesses. The company also provides professional services related to funerals and cremations, including the use of funeral home facilities and motor vehicles; arranging and directing services; and removal, preparation, embalming, cremation, memorialization, and travel protection, as well as catering services.