Archford Capital Strategies LLC Takes Position in NewMarket Corporation $NEU

Archford Capital Strategies LLC acquired a new position in shares of NewMarket Corporation (NYSE:NEU) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 2,045 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,405,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in NEU. LSV Asset Management increased its position in NewMarket by 2.4% during the 3rd quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 268,432 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $222,318,000 after purchasing an additional 6,284 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in shares of NewMarket by 1.2% during the third quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 179,702 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $148,820,000 after buying an additional 2,049 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of NewMarket by 196.7% during the third quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 137,943 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $114,246,000 after buying an additional 91,458 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. raised its stake in NewMarket by 13.3% during the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 128,933 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $106,784,000 after buying an additional 15,179 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec lifted its holdings in NewMarket by 376.4% in the third quarter. Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec now owns 99,256 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $82,205,000 after buying an additional 78,422 shares during the period. 61.09% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Ting Xu acquired 400 shares of NewMarket stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $619.21 per share, with a total value of $247,684.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 929 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $575,246.09. The trade was a 75.61% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 8.60% of the company’s stock.

NewMarket Trading Up 1.9%

NEU opened at $640.01 on Wednesday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $636.53 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $715.98. NewMarket Corporation has a 1-year low of $510.07 and a 1-year high of $875.97. The company has a market cap of $6.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.41 and a beta of 0.50. The company has a current ratio of 2.53, a quick ratio of 1.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50.

NewMarket (NYSE:NEU) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 11th. The specialty chemicals company reported $8.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The company had revenue of $635.40 million for the quarter. NewMarket had a net margin of 15.37% and a return on equity of 25.38%.

NewMarket Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 16th will be issued a $3.00 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 16th. This represents a $12.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.9%. NewMarket’s dividend payout ratio is presently 27.01%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Weiss Ratings cut shares of NewMarket from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Friday, March 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold”.

NewMarket Profile

NewMarket Corporation is a specialty chemicals and lubricants company headquartered in Richmond, Virginia. Through its Valvoline business, the company markets a broad portfolio of automotive aftermarket products, including engine oils, transmission fluids, greases and vehicle care solutions. Valvoline products are distributed through retail and commercial channels as well as a network of quick-lube service centers that provide oil changes, preventive maintenance and related services.

In its chemical additives segment, NewMarket develops, manufactures and sells performance additives for fuels, lubricants and industrial fluids.