IQ EQ FUND MANAGEMENT IRELAND Ltd Has $2.43 Million Stock Holdings in Balchem Corporation (NASDAQ:BCPC)

IQ EQ FUND MANAGEMENT IRELAND Ltd trimmed its holdings in shares of Balchem Corporation (NASDAQ:BCPC) by 8.4% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 14,619 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 1,347 shares during the period. IQ EQ FUND MANAGEMENT IRELAND Ltd’s holdings in Balchem were worth $2,427,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of BCPC. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Balchem by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 938,504 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $153,000,000 after acquiring an additional 9,600 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its stake in Balchem by 16.0% in the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 576,994 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $94,047,000 after acquiring an additional 79,499 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in Balchem by 9.5% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 407,054 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $66,348,000 after acquiring an additional 35,152 shares during the last quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. lifted its stake in Balchem by 12.9% in the first quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 358,500 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $59,511,000 after acquiring an additional 40,890 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Balchem by 21.2% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 228,933 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $37,315,000 after buying an additional 40,099 shares during the last quarter. 87.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Balchem Price Performance

NASDAQ:BCPC opened at $152.17 on Monday. Balchem Corporation has a 52 week low of $145.70 and a 52 week high of $185.96. The firm has a market cap of $4.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.90, a P/E/G ratio of 3.28 and a beta of 0.88. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $160.02 and its 200 day simple moving average is $162.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a current ratio of 2.64.

Balchem (NASDAQ:BCPC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The basic materials company reported $1.27 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.25 by $0.02. Balchem had a net margin of 14.48% and a return on equity of 12.41%. The business had revenue of $255.47 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $250.31 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.09 earnings per share. Balchem’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Balchem Corporation will post 4.64 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BCPC has been the subject of a number of research reports. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Balchem from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, July 26th. HC Wainwright set a $180.00 target price on shares of Balchem and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 28th.

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.