2Xideas AG Reduces Stock Position in Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI)

2Xideas AG decreased its stake in shares of Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI - Free Report) by 72.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 30,060 shares of the company's stock after selling 77,811 shares during the period. 2Xideas AG's holdings in Service Co. International were worth $2,399,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Service Co. International in the fourth quarter worth about $96,498,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its holdings in Service Co. International by 237.8% during the 4th quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 911,294 shares of the company's stock worth $72,739,000 after acquiring an additional 641,552 shares during the period. Proficio Capital Partners LLC lifted its stake in Service Co. International by 8,471.3% in the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 297,253 shares of the company's stock worth $23,727,000 after purchasing an additional 293,785 shares in the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its holdings in Service Co. International by 231.1% in the 4th quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 385,472 shares of the company's stock valued at $30,768,000 after purchasing an additional 269,043 shares during the period. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Service Co. International during the 4th quarter valued at $12,975,000. Institutional investors own 85.53% of the company's stock.

Service Co. International Price Performance

Shares of NYSE SCI traded up $2.29 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $77.42. 953,757 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,018,333. Service Co. International has a 52 week low of $67.19 and a 52 week high of $89.37. The company's 50 day moving average price is $78.61 and its 200 day moving average price is $80.01. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.16 billion, a PE ratio of 21.67, a PEG ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a quick ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.83.

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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 earnings per share 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%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Service Co. International will post 3.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Service Co. International Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th were paid a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.65%. This is a positive change from Service Co. International's previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. Service Co. International's dividend payout ratio is currently 36.06%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Service Co. International

In other news, CEO Thomas L. Ryan sold 50,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $84.56, for a total value of $4,228,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 982,333 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $83,066,078.48. The trade was a 4.84 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Tony Coelho sold 6,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 owns 46,824 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,712,674.96. This represents a 12.19 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 5.10% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on SCI. Oppenheimer increased their price objective on Service Co. International from $86.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. StockNews.com raised Service Co. International from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $88.50.

About Service Co. International

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.