C WorldWide Group Holding A S Sells 10,149 Shares of Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI)

C WorldWide Group Holding A S cut its holdings in Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI) by 2.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 405,087 shares of the company’s stock after selling 10,149 shares during the period. Service Co. International comprises approximately 0.4% of C WorldWide Group Holding A S’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 29th biggest holding. C WorldWide Group Holding A S owned approximately 0.27% of Service Co. International worth $27,728,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Handelsbanken Fonder AB increased its position in Service Co. International by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 1,920,710 shares of the company’s stock worth $131,473,000 after buying an additional 10,000 shares during the last quarter. Coho Partners Ltd. raised its stake in Service Co. International by 14.4% in the 3rd quarter. Coho Partners Ltd. now owns 1,899,165 shares of the company’s stock valued at $108,518,000 after acquiring an additional 238,439 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp lifted its holdings in Service Co. International by 2.4% during the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,447,701 shares of the company’s stock valued at $82,722,000 after purchasing an additional 34,596 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its holdings in shares of Service Co. International by 15.1% in the third quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 944,657 shares of the company’s stock valued at $54,374,000 after purchasing an additional 123,837 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Service Co. International by 0.8% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 899,075 shares of the company’s stock valued at $51,373,000 after purchasing an additional 7,062 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 85.53% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Thomas L. Ryan sold 16,580 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.20, for a total value of $1,197,076.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 988,365 shares in the company, valued at approximately $71,359,953. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In related news, Director Tony Coelho sold 8,950 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.39, for a total transaction of $674,740.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 60,887 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,590,270.93. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Thomas L. Ryan sold 16,580 shares of Service Co. International stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.20, for a total value of $1,197,076.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 988,365 shares in the company, valued at approximately $71,359,953. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 202,675 shares of company stock worth $15,066,906. Company insiders own 5.10% of the company’s stock.

Service Co. International Stock Performance

NYSE:SCI traded up $0.90 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $71.74. 616,044 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 664,965. Service Co. International has a one year low of $52.89 and a one year high of $75.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.02, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a current ratio of 0.67. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $72.33 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $66.63. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.51 billion, a PE ratio of 20.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 0.81.

Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 13th. The company reported $0.93 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.91 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $1.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.02 billion. Service Co. International had a net margin of 13.11% and a return on equity of 32.88%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.92 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Service Co. International will post 3.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Service Co. International Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 15th were issued a dividend of $0.30 per share. This is a positive change from Service Co. International’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.67%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 14th. Service Co. International’s dividend payout ratio is 32.95%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently commented on SCI shares. Oppenheimer lifted their target price on shares of Service Co. International from $71.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 16th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Service Co. International from $72.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $75.00.

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.