Aptus Capital Advisors LLC Increases Stake in Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI)

Aptus Capital Advisors LLC raised its stake in Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI) by 23.0% in the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 45,548 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 8,525 shares during the period. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Service Co. International were worth $3,240,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Swedbank AB acquired a new position in shares of Service Co. International in the 1st quarter valued at $224,137,000. Coho Partners Ltd. increased its holdings in Service Co. International by 10.6% in the first quarter. Coho Partners Ltd. now owns 1,685,111 shares of the company’s stock valued at $125,052,000 after buying an additional 161,570 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Service Co. International in the fourth quarter valued at $92,331,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Service Co. International by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 908,456 shares of the company’s stock worth $62,184,000 after acquiring an additional 9,381 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Premier Fund Managers Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Service Co. International by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Premier Fund Managers Ltd now owns 802,004 shares of the company’s stock worth $55,030,000 after acquiring an additional 5,693 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.53% of the company’s stock.

Service Co. International Price Performance

Shares of Service Co. International stock traded down $0.06 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $78.27. 1,565,177 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 977,455. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.30 billion, a PE ratio of 22.49, a PEG ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 0.84. The business has a 50-day moving average of $74.27 and a 200 day moving average of $72.59. Service Co. International has a fifty-two week low of $52.89 and a fifty-two week high of $80.37. The company has a quick ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.05.

Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The company reported $0.79 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.86 by ($0.07). The firm had revenue of $1.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.03 billion. Service Co. International had a net margin of 12.32% and a return on equity of 32.07%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.83 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Service Co. International will post 3.52 EPS for the current year.

Service Co. International Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Investors of record on Friday, September 13th will be given a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 13th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.53%. Service Co. International’s payout ratio is presently 34.48%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently weighed in on SCI. Oppenheimer lifted their price target on Service Co. International from $76.00 to $79.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 22nd. StockNews.com downgraded Service Co. International from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Truist Financial increased their target price on Service Co. International from $80.00 to $84.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, June 21st. Finally, UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Service Co. International from $83.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $77.60.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Service Co. International news, Director Ellen Ochoa sold 2,642 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.41, for a total value of $201,875.22. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, Director Tony Coelho sold 2,900 shares of Service Co. International stock in a transaction on Friday, June 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.38, for a total transaction of $209,902.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 60,629 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,388,327.02. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Ellen Ochoa sold 2,642 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.41, for a total transaction of $201,875.22. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 86,180 shares of company stock worth $6,376,570. 5.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Service Co. International Company Profile

Service Corporation International provides deathcare products and services in the United States and Canada. Its funeral service and cemetery operations comprise funeral service locations, cemeteries, funeral service/cemetery combination locations, crematoria, and other businesses. The company also provides professional services related to funerals and cremations, including the use of funeral home facilities and motor vehicles; arranging and directing services; and removal, preparation, embalming, cremation, memorialization, and travel protection, as well as catering services.