State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D Has $1.93 Million Stock Holdings in Balchem Co. (NASDAQ:BCPC)

State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D lowered its stake in shares of Balchem Co. (NASDAQ:BCPC) by 1.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 11,824 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 119 shares during the period. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D’s holdings in Balchem were worth $1,927,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in BCPC. Westside Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in Balchem during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,000. R Squared Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Balchem during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new position in shares of Balchem during the third quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in Balchem by 642.5% during the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 839 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $148,000 after buying an additional 726 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its position in Balchem by 18.4% in the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 1,113 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $181,000 after buying an additional 173 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.91% of the company’s stock.

Balchem Stock Up 1.1 %

BCPC opened at $165.57 on Tuesday. Balchem Co. has a 12 month low of $137.69 and a 12 month high of $186.03. The company has a market cap of $5.38 billion, a PE ratio of 44.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.34 and a beta of 0.69. The company has a current ratio of 2.98, a quick ratio of 1.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. The company has a 50 day moving average of $161.98 and a 200 day moving average of $169.37.

Balchem (NASDAQ:BCPC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 21st. The basic materials company reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.11 by ($0.08). The company had revenue of $240.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $239.96 million. Balchem had a net margin of 12.90% and a return on equity of 10.99%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Balchem Co. will post 4.01 EPS for the current year.

Balchem Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed an annual dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 17th. Investors of record on Thursday, December 26th were given a $0.87 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 0.4%. This is a boost from Balchem’s previous annual dividend of $0.79. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, December 26th. Balchem’s dividend payout ratio is 22.14%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently commented on BCPC shares. HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $190.00 target price on shares of Balchem in a report on Monday. StockNews.com raised shares of Balchem from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, October 28th.

About Balchem

Balchem Corporation develops, manufactures, and markets specialty performance ingredients and products for the nutritional, food, pharmaceutical, animal health, medical device sterilization, plant nutrition, and industrial markets worldwide. It operates through three segments: Human Nutrition and Health, Animal Nutrition and Health, and Specialty Products.