Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund Has $2.83 Million Position in Balchem Co. (NASDAQ:BCPC)

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund lessened its position in Balchem Co. (NASDAQ:BCPC) by 4.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 17,384 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 750 shares during the period. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund’s holdings in Balchem were worth $2,834,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in BCPC. State Street Corp boosted its position in Balchem by 1.0% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,234,226 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $217,224,000 after buying an additional 12,006 shares in the last quarter. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC grew its position in Balchem by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,175,569 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $206,900,000 after acquiring an additional 20,360 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Balchem by 3.1% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 928,904 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $163,514,000 after purchasing an additional 27,979 shares in the last quarter. Geneva Capital Management LLC raised its position in Balchem by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. Geneva Capital Management LLC now owns 779,869 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $137,257,000 after purchasing an additional 12,750 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC increased its stake in shares of Balchem by 944.3% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 497,495 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $87,559,000 after buying an additional 449,854 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.91% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have commented on BCPC shares. Sidoti upgraded Balchem to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday. HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating and set a $190.00 target price on shares of Balchem in a research report on Monday. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Balchem from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday.

Balchem Stock Down 0.4 %

NASDAQ:BCPC opened at $172.00 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $5.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 43.77, a PEG ratio of 4.41 and a beta of 0.69. The company has a current ratio of 1.99, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $162.24 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $169.48. Balchem Co. has a 1 year low of $137.69 and a 1 year high of $186.03.

Balchem (NASDAQ:BCPC) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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). The business had revenue of $240.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $239.96 million. Balchem had a net margin of 13.47% and a return on equity of 11.37%. As a group, equities analysts expect that Balchem Co. will post 4.64 earnings per share for the current year.

Balchem Increases Dividend

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

Balchem Company 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.