Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI) Shares Gap Up – Here’s Why

Shares of Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI) gapped up prior to trading on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $75.99, but opened at $82.00. Service Co. International shares last traded at $83.15, with a volume of 357,511 shares traded.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Raymond James lifted their target price on shares of Service Co. International from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Oppenheimer lifted their target price on shares of Service Co. International from $86.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. StockNews.com cut shares of Service Co. International from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Truist Financial lifted their target price on shares of Service Co. International from $84.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Service Co. International has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $88.50.

Service Co. International Price Performance

The company’s 50 day moving average price is $79.57 and its 200-day moving average price is $79.55. The company has a market capitalization of $11.15 billion, a PE ratio of 22.42, a PEG ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a current ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.91.

Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $1.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.06. Service Co. International had a net margin of 12.19% and a return on equity of 31.84%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Service Co. International will post 3.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Tony Coelho sold 2,555 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.64, for a total transaction of $218,810.20. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 53,324 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,566,667.36. This represents a 4.57 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Elisabeth G. Nash sold 56,100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $86.13, for a total transaction of $4,831,893.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 109,260 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,410,563.80. This trade represents a 33.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 108,655 shares of company stock valued at $9,356,203. Company insiders own 5.10% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Service Co. International

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in Service Co. International by 263.1% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 15,912 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,206,000 after buying an additional 11,530 shares in the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its holdings in Service Co. International by 12.0% in the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 181,902 shares of the company’s stock worth $14,358,000 after buying an additional 19,418 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Service Co. International by 7,802.1% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 7,586 shares of the company’s stock worth $599,000 after buying an additional 7,490 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Service Co. International by 5.1% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,211,902 shares of the company’s stock worth $253,567,000 after buying an additional 156,086 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Premier Fund Managers Ltd lifted its holdings in Service Co. International by 23.9% in the 3rd quarter. Premier Fund Managers Ltd now owns 1,093,723 shares of the company’s stock worth $85,721,000 after buying an additional 210,802 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.53% 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.