Innospec (NASDAQ:IOSP) Upgraded at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Innospec (NASDAQ:IOSP) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note released on Monday.

Innospec Price Performance

Shares of IOSP opened at $98.24 on Monday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $106.17 and its 200-day moving average is $110.66. Innospec has a 12-month low of $95.17 and a 12-month high of $133.71. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 69.18 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 the consensus estimate of $1.36 by $0.05. Innospec had a net margin of 1.93% and a return on equity of 12.27%. The firm had revenue of $466.80 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $447.43 million. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Innospec will post 6.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Innospec declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Monday, March 10th that permits the company to repurchase $50.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the specialty chemicals company to purchase up to 2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Milton C. Blackmore sold 652 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.30, for a total transaction of $67,351.60. Following the transaction, the director now owns 8,376 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $865,240.80. This trade represents a 7.22 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Philip John Boon sold 3,754 shares of Innospec stock in a transaction on Friday, February 21st. The shares were 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,074,160.70. The trade was a 15.75 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 7,696 shares of company stock worth $794,853 over the last 90 days. 1.52% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in IOSP. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in Innospec by 3.5% during the 3rd 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 last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in Innospec by 24.6% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 266,688 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $30,160,000 after purchasing an additional 52,640 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its holdings in Innospec by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 237,616 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $26,152,000 after buying an additional 2,633 shares during the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC increased its position in Innospec by 5.2% in the 3rd quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 3,103 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $350,000 after buying an additional 154 shares during the period. Finally, Citigroup Inc. boosted its position in shares of Innospec by 46.1% in the third quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 32,193 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $3,641,000 after acquiring an additional 10,162 shares during the period. 96.64% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.