Fox Run Management L.L.C. Invests $257,000 in Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI)

Fox Run Management L.L.C. bought a new stake in shares of Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 3,220 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $257,000.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SCI. FMR LLC grew its stake in shares of Service Co. International by 300.6% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 4,055,823 shares of the company’s stock valued at $320,126,000 after buying an additional 3,043,354 shares during the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC grew its position in Service Co. International by 8,471.3% during the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 297,253 shares of the company’s stock worth $23,727,000 after acquiring an additional 293,785 shares during the last quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC grew its position in Service Co. International by 2,527.9% during the 3rd quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC now owns 293,329 shares of the company’s stock worth $23,152,000 after acquiring an additional 282,167 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Service Co. International in the 4th quarter worth approximately $12,975,000. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Service Co. International by 5.1% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,211,902 shares of the company’s stock valued at $253,567,000 after purchasing an additional 156,086 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.53% of the company’s stock.

Service Co. International Stock Performance

Shares of SCI stock opened at $80.19 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.59, a PEG ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 0.90. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $78.85 and a 200 day moving average of $80.20. Service Co. International has a 52 week low of $67.19 and a 52 week high of $89.37. The company has a quick ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.83.

Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI) last announced its 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 net margin of 12.39% and a return on equity of 32.18%. As a group, research analysts expect that Service Co. International will post 3.84 earnings per share for the current year.

Service Co. International Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.32 per share. This is an increase from Service Co. International’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.60%. Service Co. International’s dividend payout ratio is 36.06%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently commented on SCI shares. 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 report on Wednesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Service Co. International has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $88.50.

Insider Transactions at Service Co. International

In related news, 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 completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 46,824 shares in the company, valued at $3,712,674.96. This trade represents a 12.19 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 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 transaction of $4,228,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 982,333 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $83,066,078.48. This trade represents a 4.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 5.10% of the company’s stock.

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.