Seaport Res Ptn Upgrades Innospec (NASDAQ:IOSP) to Strong-Buy

Innospec (NASDAQ:IOSP) was upgraded by analysts at Seaport Res Ptn from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note issued to investors on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

Separately, StockNews.com lowered Innospec from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd.

Innospec Trading Up 2.0 %

IOSP stock opened at $88.44 on Monday. Innospec has a 1-year low of $80.32 and a 1-year high of $133.71. The business’s 50 day moving average is $95.76 and its 200-day moving average is $107.45. The firm has a market cap of $2.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 62.28 and a beta of 1.03.

Innospec (NASDAQ:IOSP) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.41 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.36 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $466.80 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $447.43 million. Innospec had a net margin of 1.93% and a return on equity of 12.27%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Innospec will post 6.18 EPS for the current year.

Innospec declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Monday, March 10th that authorizes the company to repurchase $50.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the specialty chemicals company to buy up to 2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Innospec

In other news, Director Milton C. Blackmore sold 652 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.30, for a total value of $67,351.60. Following the transaction, the director now owns 8,376 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $865,240.80. This trade represents a 7.22 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Corbin Barnes sold 2,692 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.30, for a total transaction of $278,083.60. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 8,051 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $831,668.30. This trade represents a 25.06 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 7,696 shares of company stock worth $794,853. Insiders own 1.31% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in IOSP. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp acquired a new position in Innospec in the fourth quarter valued at about $106,000. Covestor Ltd raised its position in shares of Innospec by 13.9% in the 4th quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 967 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $106,000 after acquiring an additional 118 shares during the period. KBC Group NV boosted its stake in Innospec by 82.3% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,236 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $136,000 after acquiring an additional 558 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in Innospec by 54.2% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,201 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $136,000 after purchasing an additional 422 shares during the period. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Innospec by 91.9% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,802 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $198,000 after purchasing an additional 863 shares in the last quarter. 96.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.