Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC Lowers Stock Position in Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI)

Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC lowered its position in shares of Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI - Free Report) by 32.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 247,231 shares of the company's stock after selling 118,218 shares during the period. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC owned about 0.17% of Service Co. International worth $19,734,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new position in Service Co. International during the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Vision Financial Markets LLC bought a new position in shares of Service Co. International during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $52,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Service Co. International during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $60,000. Blue Trust Inc. increased its holdings in Service Co. International by 20.1% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,397 shares of the company's stock valued at $110,000 after buying an additional 234 shares during the period. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. raised its stake in Service Co. International by 13.9% in the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 1,936 shares of the company's stock worth $155,000 after buying an additional 236 shares in the last quarter. 85.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Service Co. International Stock Down 5.3 %

NYSE SCI traded down $4.32 on Friday, hitting $77.06. The stock had a trading volume of 2,006,372 shares, compared to its average volume of 997,967. The business's fifty day moving average price is $79.19 and its 200 day moving average price is $80.22. The stock has a market cap of $11.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.83, a current ratio of 0.52 and a quick ratio of 0.48. Service Co. International has a 52-week low of $67.19 and a 52-week high of $89.37.

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Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $1.06 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $1.06. Service Co. International had a return on equity of 32.18% and a net margin of 12.39%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Service Co. International will post 3.84 earnings per share for the current year.

Service Co. International Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th were paid a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.66%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. This is an increase from Service Co. International's previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. Service Co. International's payout ratio is presently 36.06%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on SCI. StockNews.com upgraded Service Co. International from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday. Oppenheimer lifted their target price on Service Co. International from $86.00 to $92.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $88.50.

Insider Activity

In other Service Co. International news, Director Tony Coelho sold 6,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $79.29, for a total value of $515,385.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 46,824 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,712,674.96. This represents a 12.19 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Thomas L. Ryan sold 50,000 shares of Service Co. International stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $84.56, for a total value of $4,228,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 982,333 shares of the company's stock, valued at $83,066,078.48. The trade was a 4.84 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 5.10% of the company's stock.

Service Co. International Company Profile

Service Corp. International engages in the provision of funeral goods and services. It operates through the Funeral and Cemetery segments. The Funeral segment offers services related to cremations, including the use of home facilities and motor vehicles, arranging and directing services, removal, preparation, embalming, memorialization, and catering.