Ritholtz Wealth Management Lowers Stock Holdings in NewMarket Corporation (NYSE:NEU)

Ritholtz Wealth Management reduced its position in NewMarket Corporation (NYSE:NEU) by 32.5% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,084 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 521 shares during the quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management’s holdings in NewMarket were worth $614,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of NEU. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. lifted its stake in NewMarket by 5.6% in the 4th quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 1,042 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $550,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Principal Securities Inc. increased its holdings in shares of NewMarket by 10.9% in the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 357 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $189,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its position in shares of NewMarket by 20.6% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 91,875 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $48,542,000 after buying an additional 15,694 shares in the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC boosted its stake in NewMarket by 5.1% during the fourth quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 851 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $426,000 after buying an additional 41 shares during the period. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. boosted its stake in NewMarket by 147.2% during the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 47,717 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $25,211,000 after buying an additional 28,417 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 61.09% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Wall Street Zen lowered NewMarket from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th.

Insider Activity at NewMarket

In related news, CAO Bruce R. Hazelgrove III sold 311 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $642.43, for a total value of $199,795.73. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 358 shares in the company, valued at $229,989.94. The trade was a 46.49% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 19.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

NewMarket Stock Up 2.1%

NEU stock opened at $648.74 on Thursday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $621.78 and its 200 day moving average is $561.57. The stock has a market cap of $6.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.91 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a current ratio of 2.84, a quick ratio of 1.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. NewMarket Corporation has a 1-year low of $480.00 and a 1-year high of $671.16.

NewMarket (NYSE:NEU) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The specialty chemicals company reported $13.26 EPS for the quarter. The business had revenue of $700.95 million during the quarter. NewMarket had a net margin of 17.22% and a return on equity of 34.45%.

NewMarket Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Investors of record on Monday, June 16th will be given a $2.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 16th. This represents a $11.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.70%. NewMarket’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.89%.

NewMarket Company Profile

NewMarket Corporation, through its subsidiaries, primarily engages in the manufacture and sale of petroleum additives. The company offers lubricant additives for use in various vehicle and industrial applications, including engine oils, transmission fluids, off-road powertrain and hydraulic systems, gear oils, hydraulic oils, turbine oils, and other applications where metal-to-metal moving parts are utilized; engine oil additives designed for passenger cars, motorcycles, on and off-road heavy duty commercial equipment, locomotives, and engines in ocean-going vessels; driveline additives designed for products, such as transmission fluids, axle fluids, and off-road powertrain fluids; and industrial additives designed for products for industrial applications consisting of hydraulic fluids, grease, industrial gear fluids, and industrial specialty applications, such as turbine oils.