Balchem Co. (NASDAQ:BCPC - Get Free Report) gapped up before the market opened on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $166.16, but opened at $182.13. Balchem shares last traded at $177.09, with a volume of 10,209 shares changing hands.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
Several brokerages have recently commented on BCPC. StockNews.com downgraded Balchem from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. HC Wainwright raised their price objective on Balchem from $170.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st.
Read Our Latest Research Report on Balchem
Balchem Stock Up 3.2 %
The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 1.79 and a current ratio of 2.83. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $171.57 and its 200 day simple moving average is $162.12. The firm has a market cap of $5.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 49.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.43 and a beta of 0.65.
Balchem (NASDAQ:BCPC - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Friday, July 26th. The basic materials company reported $0.98 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.95 by $0.03. Balchem had a net margin of 12.52% and a return on equity of 10.94%. The company had revenue of $234.08 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $241.26 million. Research analysts anticipate that Balchem Co. will post 3.96 EPS for the current year.
Insider Buying and Selling at Balchem
In related news, SVP Gunsteren Job Leonard Van sold 7,750 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $180.05, for a total transaction of $1,395,387.50. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 8,540 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,537,627. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 1.25% of the company's stock.
Institutional Inflows and Outflows
Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Balchem by 3.8% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,935,935 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $609,873,000 after purchasing an additional 144,423 shares during the last quarter. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Balchem by 2.7% during the second quarter. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,155,209 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $177,844,000 after buying an additional 29,825 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in Balchem by 0.9% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 697,461 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $107,372,000 after buying an additional 5,977 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its position in Balchem by 1.2% in the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 277,475 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $42,717,000 after acquiring an additional 3,279 shares during the period. Finally, William Blair Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in Balchem by 8.4% in the second quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 233,831 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $35,998,000 after acquiring an additional 18,104 shares during the last quarter. 87.91% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
About Balchem
(
Get Free Report)
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.
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