Federated Hermes Inc. Purchases Shares of 203 Balchem Co. (NASDAQ:BCPC)

Federated Hermes Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Balchem Co. (NASDAQ:BCPC) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 203 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $33,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of BCPC. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Balchem in the 4th quarter worth approximately $70,165,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in Balchem in the fourth quarter worth $23,628,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in Balchem in the fourth quarter valued at $13,359,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in Balchem by 11.0% during the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 509,490 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $83,044,000 after purchasing an additional 50,504 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC lifted its stake in Balchem by 405.8% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 60,777 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $10,695,000 after purchasing an additional 48,762 shares during the last quarter. 87.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Balchem Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of BCPC stock opened at $161.50 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a current ratio of 1.99 and a quick ratio of 1.16. The business has a 50-day moving average of $164.84 and a 200 day moving average of $167.67. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.25 billion, a PE ratio of 41.09, a P/E/G ratio of 4.41 and a beta of 0.75. Balchem Co. has a 1-year low of $137.69 and a 1-year high of $186.03.

Balchem (NASDAQ:BCPC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 21st. The basic materials company reported $1.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.11 by ($0.08). The firm had revenue of $240.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $239.96 million. Balchem had a net margin of 13.47% and a return on equity of 11.37%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Balchem Co. will post 4.64 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BCPC has been the topic of a number of research reports. HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and set a $190.00 price objective on shares of Balchem in a report on Monday, February 24th. Sidoti raised shares of Balchem to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Balchem from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th.

Balchem Company Profile

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.