StockNews.com Upgrades Innospec (NASDAQ:IOSP) to Strong-Buy

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Innospec (NASDAQ:IOSP) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a research note published on Friday morning.

Innospec Price Performance

IOSP stock opened at $108.90 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $115.08 and its 200-day simple moving average is $115.77. The company has a market capitalization of $2.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.01 and a beta of 1.09. Innospec has a 12 month low of $103.97 and a 12 month high of $133.71.

Innospec (NASDAQ:IOSP) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 5th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.35 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.35. The business had revenue of $443.40 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $442.13 million. Innospec had a net margin of 7.68% and a return on equity of 13.33%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.59 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Innospec will post 5.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Innospec Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a Semi-Annual dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, November 26th. Investors of record on Monday, November 18th were paid a $0.79 dividend. This is a boost from Innospec’s previous Semi-Annual dividend of $0.72. This represents a dividend yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 18th. Innospec’s payout ratio is currently 27.57%.

Insider Activity at Innospec

In related news, Director Milton C. Blackmore sold 1,035 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $122.92, for a total value of $127,222.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 9,028 shares in the company, valued at $1,109,721.76. The trade was a 10.29 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.52% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Innospec

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. US Bancorp DE raised its position in Innospec by 323.6% during the third quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 5,490 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $621,000 after acquiring an additional 4,194 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Innospec by 3.5% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 336,522 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $38,057,000 after acquiring an additional 11,479 shares during the period. Quest Partners LLC raised its position in Innospec by 2,699.6% during the second quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 13,802 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $1,706,000 after acquiring an additional 13,309 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC raised its position in Innospec by 5.2% during the third quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 3,103 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $350,000 after acquiring an additional 154 shares during the period. Finally, TD Asset Management Inc raised its position in Innospec by 58.9% during the second quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 17,000 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $2,101,000 after acquiring an additional 6,300 shares during the period. 96.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Innospec Company Profile

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.