Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI) Hits New 52-Week High After Dividend Announcement

Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday after the company announced a dividend. The company traded as high as $86.39 and last traded at $85.22, with a volume of 55343 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $83.72.

The newly announced dividend which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.31 per share. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.43%. This is an increase from Service Co. International’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. Service Co. International’s dividend payout ratio is 34.88%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on SCI. StockNews.com raised Service Co. International from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Raymond James increased their target price on Service Co. International from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Truist Financial increased their target price on Service Co. International from $84.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $85.25.

Service Co. International Trading Up 3.9 %

The firm has a market cap of $12.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.35, a PEG ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.91, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a current ratio of 0.52. The business has a fifty day moving average of $77.86 and a two-hundred day moving average of $74.38.

Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $0.79 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.79. The business had revenue of $1.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.02 billion. Service Co. International had a return on equity of 31.84% and a net margin of 12.19%. The company’s revenue was up 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.78 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Service Co. International will post 3.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Service Co. International

In other Service Co. International news, Director Ellen Ochoa sold 2,642 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.41, for a total transaction of $201,875.22. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 4.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Service Co. International

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. BDF Gestion purchased a new position in shares of Service Co. International during the 2nd quarter worth $3,948,000. Boston Trust Walden Corp lifted its stake in shares of Service Co. International by 2.7% during the 2nd quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 684,846 shares of the company’s stock worth $48,713,000 after purchasing an additional 17,874 shares during the period. Sei Investments Co. lifted its stake in shares of Service Co. International by 12.8% during the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 103,477 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,680,000 after purchasing an additional 11,709 shares during the period. Tidal Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of Service Co. International during the 1st quarter worth $917,000. Finally, State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System lifted its stake in shares of Service Co. International by 5.3% during the 1st quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 171,697 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,809,000 after purchasing an additional 8,656 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.53% of the company’s stock.

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.