Innospec Inc. (NASDAQ:IOSP) Director Leslie J. Parrette Sells 446 Shares

Innospec Inc. (NASDAQ:IOSP) Director Leslie J. Parrette sold 446 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.63, for a total transaction of $40,420.98. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 5,497 shares in the company, valued at $498,193.11. This trade represents a 7.50% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link.

Innospec Stock Up 0.8%

Shares of NASDAQ:IOSP opened at $88.99 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $91.37 and its 200-day moving average price is $104.83. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.22 billion, a PE ratio of 62.67 and a beta of 1.11. Innospec Inc. has a twelve month low of $80.32 and a twelve month high of $133.53.

Innospec (NASDAQ:IOSP) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.40 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $440.80 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $466.50 million. Innospec had a net margin of 1.93% and a return on equity of 12.27%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 11.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.75 EPS. Analysts expect that Innospec Inc. will post 6.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Innospec Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 20th will be issued a $0.84 dividend. This represents a yield of 1.7%. This is a positive change from Innospec’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.79. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 20th. Innospec’s dividend payout ratio is currently 155.56%.

Innospec announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Monday, March 10th that permits the company to repurchase $50.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the specialty chemicals company to purchase up to 2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Innospec

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Tsfg LLC purchased a new stake in Innospec in the 1st quarter worth approximately $35,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp purchased a new stake in Innospec during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $106,000. Covestor Ltd grew its holdings in Innospec by 13.9% during the 4th quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 967 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $106,000 after buying an additional 118 shares in the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd purchased a new stake in Innospec during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $121,000. Finally, KBC Group NV grew its holdings in Innospec by 82.3% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,236 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $136,000 after buying an additional 558 shares in the last quarter. 96.64% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded shares of Innospec from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 21st. StockNews.com cut shares of Innospec from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th.

Innospec Company Profile

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.