Southeast Asset Advisors LLC Decreases Stock Holdings in Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI)

Southeast Asset Advisors LLC lowered its position in Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI) by 10.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 55,198 shares of the company’s stock after selling 6,185 shares during the period. Southeast Asset Advisors LLC’s holdings in Service Co. International were worth $4,406,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Service Co. International in the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Mizuho Bank Ltd. purchased a new stake in Service Co. International in the fourth quarter valued at about $40,000. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Service Co. International in the fourth quarter valued at about $40,000. Vision Financial Markets LLC acquired a new stake in Service Co. International in the fourth quarter worth about $52,000. Finally, Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Service Co. International during the fourth quarter worth about $60,000. Institutional investors own 85.53% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Service Co. International

In other Service Co. International news, Director Tony Coelho sold 6,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $79.29, for a total value of $515,385.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 46,824 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,712,674.96. This trade represents a 12.19 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Thomas L. Ryan sold 50,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $84.56, for a total value of $4,228,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 982,333 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $83,066,078.48. This trade represents a 4.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 5.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SCI has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on shares of Service Co. International from $86.00 to $92.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Service Co. International from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $88.50.

Service Co. International Stock Down 5.3 %

Shares of SCI opened at $77.06 on Monday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $79.19 and its 200-day moving average price is $80.22. The company has a quick ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.83. The company has a market capitalization of $11.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.71, a PEG ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 0.81. Service Co. International has a 52 week low of $67.19 and a 52 week high of $89.37.

Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $1.06 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.06. Service Co. International had a return on equity of 32.18% and a net margin of 12.39%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Service Co. International will post 3.84 EPS for the current year.

Service Co. International Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th were given a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.66%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. This is a positive change from Service Co. International’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. Service Co. International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.06%.

Service Co. International Company Profile

Service Corp. International engages in the provision of funeral goods and services. It operates through the Funeral and Cemetery segments. The Funeral segment offers services related to cremations, including the use of home facilities and motor vehicles, arranging and directing services, removal, preparation, embalming, memorialization, and catering.