Cutter & CO Brokerage Inc. Decreases Stock Position in Balchem Co. (NASDAQ:BCPC)

Cutter & CO Brokerage Inc. cut its stake in Balchem Co. (NASDAQ:BCPC) by 0.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 42,073 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 125 shares during the period. Balchem comprises about 1.7% of Cutter & CO Brokerage Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 11th largest holding. Cutter & CO Brokerage Inc.’s holdings in Balchem were worth $6,858,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of BCPC. Creative Planning boosted its holdings in Balchem by 33.4% in the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 9,777 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,721,000 after purchasing an additional 2,449 shares during the period. Raymond James & Associates boosted its holdings in Balchem by 7.4% in the third quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 54,089 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $9,520,000 after purchasing an additional 3,741 shares during the period. Private Advisor Group LLC purchased a new stake in Balchem during the 3rd quarter worth about $220,000. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. lifted its holdings in Balchem by 12.5% during the 3rd quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. now owns 1,589 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $280,000 after buying an additional 177 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Congress Asset Management Co. lifted its holdings in Balchem by 12.4% during the 3rd quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 301,440 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $53,053,000 after buying an additional 33,373 shares during the last quarter. 87.91% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BCPC has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. StockNews.com downgraded Balchem from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $190.00 price target on shares of Balchem in a report on Monday.

Balchem Stock Performance

Shares of BCPC stock opened at $173.59 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.64 billion, a PE ratio of 44.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.41 and a beta of 0.69. Balchem Co. has a 52-week low of $137.69 and a 52-week high of $186.03. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $162.01 and its 200 day moving average price is $169.44. The company has a quick ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 1.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19.

Balchem (NASDAQ:BCPC) last released its earnings results on Friday, February 21st. The basic materials company reported $1.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.11 by ($0.08). Balchem had a return on equity of 11.37% and a net margin of 13.47%. The business had revenue of $240.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $239.96 million. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Balchem Co. will post 4.64 EPS for the current year.

Balchem Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared an annual dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 17th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 26th were paid a dividend of $0.87 per share. This is a positive change from Balchem’s previous annual dividend of $0.79. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, December 26th. This represents a dividend yield of 0.4%. Balchem’s payout ratio is 22.14%.

Balchem Profile

Balchem Corporation develops, manufactures, and markets specialty performance ingredients and products for the nutritional, food, pharmaceutical, animal health, medical device sterilization, plant nutrition, and industrial markets worldwide. It operates through three segments: Human Nutrition and Health, Animal Nutrition and Health, and Specialty Products.