Innospec (NASDAQ:IOSP) Sets New 52-Week Low – Time to Sell?

Innospec Inc. (NASDAQ:IOSP) reached a new 52-week low on Friday . The stock traded as low as $94.77 and last traded at $95.07, with a volume of 52903 shares. The stock had previously closed at $97.39.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded Innospec from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday.

Innospec Stock Down 2.2 %

The firm has a 50-day moving average of $105.86 and a two-hundred day moving average of $110.57. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 67.04 and a beta of 1.08.

Innospec (NASDAQ:IOSP) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.36 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $466.80 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $447.43 million. Innospec had a net margin of 1.93% and a return on equity of 12.27%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Innospec Inc. will post 6.18 EPS for the current year.

Innospec announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Monday, March 10th that authorizes the company to buyback $50.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the specialty chemicals company to buy up to 2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Innospec

In other news, VP Philip John Boon sold 3,754 shares of Innospec 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 completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 20,079 shares in the company, valued at $2,074,160.70. The trade was a 15.75 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Corbin Barnes sold 598 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.06, for a total value of $61,629.88. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 8,051 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $829,736.06. The trade was a 6.91 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 7,696 shares of company stock valued at $794,853. 1.52% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Innospec

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in IOSP. Wasatch Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of Innospec by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 1,805,546 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $204,189,000 after purchasing an additional 11,231 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its position in Innospec by 2.1% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 996,281 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $112,669,000 after buying an additional 20,744 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in Innospec by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 922,220 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $101,500,000 after buying an additional 14,188 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Innospec by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 692,071 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $76,184,000 after buying an additional 14,788 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pacer Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Innospec in the fourth quarter worth about $53,457,000. 96.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.