Balchem Co. (NASDAQ:BCPC) Shares Sold by Brown Brothers Harriman & Co.

Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. lessened its holdings in Balchem Co. (NASDAQ:BCPC) by 4.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 6,230 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 270 shares during the quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co.’s holdings in Balchem were worth $1,015,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Watts Gwilliam & Co. LLC increased its stake in shares of Balchem by 63.7% in the fourth quarter. Watts Gwilliam & Co. LLC now owns 35,069 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $5,438,000 after acquiring an additional 13,642 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings in Balchem by 1.7% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 458,986 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $80,782,000 after purchasing an additional 7,721 shares during the last quarter. Stifel Financial Corp boosted its holdings in Balchem by 26.2% in the third quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 11,893 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,093,000 after purchasing an additional 2,467 shares during the last quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Balchem during the 4th quarter worth about $503,000. Finally, Congress Asset Management Co. raised its stake in shares of Balchem by 5.4% during the 4th quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 317,610 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $51,769,000 after buying an additional 16,170 shares during the last quarter. 87.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently commented on the company. Sidoti raised Balchem to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $190.00 price objective on shares of Balchem in a research note on Monday, February 24th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Balchem from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th.

Balchem Price Performance

NASDAQ:BCPC opened at $163.79 on Monday. 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 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 $165.26 and its 200-day moving average price is $169.28. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.33 billion, a PE ratio of 41.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.41 and a beta of 0.63.

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

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.