Nisa Investment Advisors LLC Sells 304 Shares of Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI)

Nisa Investment Advisors LLC lowered its stake in shares of Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI) by 2.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 10,425 shares of the company’s stock after selling 304 shares during the period. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Service Co. International were worth $714,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Quarry LP lifted its holdings in Service Co. International by 282.2% during the first quarter. Quarry LP now owns 493 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 364 shares during the period. Larson Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in Service Co. International during the third quarter worth $36,000. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV lifted its holdings in Service Co. International by 204.1% during the fourth quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 599 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 402 shares during the period. Ancora Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Service Co. International during the first quarter worth $44,000. Finally, M&R Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Service Co. International by 125.5% during the fourth quarter. M&R Capital Management Inc. now owns 902 shares of the company’s stock worth $62,000 after buying an additional 502 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.53% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

Service Co. International Stock Performance

Shares of SCI opened at $69.27 on Wednesday. Service Co. International has a 12 month low of $52.89 and a 12 month high of $75.97. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $72.06 and a 200-day moving average price of $65.87. The company has a current ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.02. The firm has a market cap of $10.15 billion, a PE ratio of 19.68, a P/E/G ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 0.81.

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

Service Co. International Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 15th were given a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.73%. This is an increase from Service Co. International’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. Service Co. International’s dividend payout ratio is presently 32.95%.

Insider Activity at Service Co. International

In related news, VP Steven A. Tidwell sold 45,995 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.43, for a total value of $3,469,402.85. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 54,354 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,099,922.22. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, VP Steven A. Tidwell sold 45,995 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.43, for a total value of $3,469,402.85. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 54,354 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,099,922.22. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, COO Sumner J. Waring III sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.07, for a total value of $3,753,500.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 289,400 shares in the company, valued at $21,725,258. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 202,675 shares of company stock valued at $15,066,906 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 4.60% of the company’s stock.

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.