Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI) Downgraded by StockNews.com to Sell

StockNews.com cut shares of Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research note released on Friday morning.

Several other equities research analysts have also issued reports on the stock. Raymond James lifted their price target on shares of Service Co. International from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Truist Financial lifted their target price on Service Co. International from $84.00 to $92.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. One research 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 currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $85.25.

Service Co. International Stock Up 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE:SCI traded up $0.98 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $86.94. 740,575 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 907,466. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $78.36 and its 200-day simple moving average is $74.67. Service Co. International has a one year low of $57.03 and a one year high of $87.11. The company has a market cap of $12.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.28, a P/E/G ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a quick ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.91.

Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $0.79 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.79. The company had revenue of $1.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.02 billion. Service Co. International had a net margin of 12.19% and a return on equity of 31.84%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.78 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Service Co. International will post 3.51 EPS for the current year.

Service Co. International Increases Dividend

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Ellen Ochoa sold 2,642 shares of Service Co. International 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 sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 5.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Service Co. International

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Swedbank AB bought a new stake in Service Co. International in the 1st quarter valued at $224,137,000. Select Equity Group L.P. increased its holdings in shares of Service Co. International by 53.5% in the second quarter. Select Equity Group L.P. now owns 7,239,783 shares of the company’s stock valued at $514,966,000 after purchasing an additional 2,524,795 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC raised its position in shares of Service Co. International by 646.5% in the second quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 267,860 shares of the company’s stock valued at $19,053,000 after purchasing an additional 231,980 shares during the period. Premier Fund Managers Ltd lifted its stake in shares of Service Co. International by 23.9% during the 3rd quarter. Premier Fund Managers Ltd now owns 1,093,723 shares of the company’s stock worth $85,721,000 after buying an additional 210,802 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Lombard Odier Asset Management Europe Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Service Co. International during the 2nd quarter worth about $14,226,000. 85.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Service Co. International

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.