Innospec Inc. (NASDAQ:IOSP) Position Increased by Wells Fargo & Company MN

Wells Fargo & Company MN boosted its stake in Innospec Inc. (NASDAQ:IOSP - Free Report) by 7.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 55,702 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after purchasing an additional 3,696 shares during the quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN owned about 0.22% of Innospec worth $6,131,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp bought a new position in Innospec in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $106,000. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Innospec by 54.2% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,201 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $136,000 after purchasing an additional 422 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV boosted its stake in Innospec by 82.3% in the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,236 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $136,000 after buying an additional 558 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its position in Innospec by 91.9% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,802 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $198,000 after acquiring an additional 863 shares during the last quarter. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its stake in Innospec by 8.8% during the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 1,868 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $206,000 after acquiring an additional 151 shares in the last quarter. 96.64% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Innospec Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of Innospec stock traded up $0.48 on Thursday, reaching $88.84. The stock had a trading volume of 17,728 shares, compared to its average volume of 147,789. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $95.37 and a 200 day moving average price of $107.32. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 62.58 and a beta of 1.03. Innospec Inc. has a 1 year low of $80.32 and a 1 year high of $133.71.

Innospec (NASDAQ:IOSP - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.41 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.36 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $466.80 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $447.43 million. Innospec had a return on equity of 12.27% and a net margin of 1.93%. On average, analysts forecast that Innospec Inc. will post 6.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Innospec announced that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Monday, March 10th that allows the company to buyback $50.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization allows the specialty chemicals company to reacquire up to 2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically an indication that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity at Innospec

In related news, VP Philip John Boon sold 3,754 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.30, for a total transaction of $387,788.20. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 20,079 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,074,160.70. This represents a 15.75 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Corbin Barnes sold 598 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.06, for a total transaction of $61,629.88. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 8,051 shares in the company, valued at approximately $829,736.06. The trade was a 6.91 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 7,696 shares of company stock valued at $794,853 over the last quarter. 1.31% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on IOSP shares. Seaport Res Ptn raised Innospec from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday. StockNews.com downgraded Innospec from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd.

About Innospec

Innospec Inc develops, manufactures, blends, markets, and supplies specialty chemicals in the United States, rest of North America, the United Kingdom, rest of Europe, and internationally. The company's Fuel Specialties segment offers a range of specialty chemical products that are used as additives in additives in diesel, jet, marine, fuel oil and other fuels.