KBC Group NV Buys 1,663 Shares of Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI)

KBC Group NV grew its stake in shares of Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI) by 41.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,656 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,663 shares during the period. KBC Group NV’s holdings in Service Co. International were worth $451,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Marshall Wace LLP purchased a new stake in Service Co. International during the 2nd quarter worth about $897,000. Millennium Management LLC lifted its holdings 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 worth $19,053,000 after buying an additional 231,980 shares in the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp bought a new position in shares of Service Co. International in the second quarter valued at approximately $426,000. Creative Planning grew its stake in Service Co. International by 35.2% during the second quarter. Creative Planning now owns 24,005 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,707,000 after acquiring an additional 6,256 shares in the last quarter. Finally, B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Service Co. International during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $203,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.53% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently commented on SCI. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Service Co. International from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Truist Financial raised their price target on Service Co. International from $84.00 to $92.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Oppenheimer lifted their price target on Service Co. International from $86.00 to $92.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Raymond James raised their target price 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. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $88.50.

Service Co. International Price Performance

SCI opened at $78.09 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.91. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.70, a PEG ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 0.87. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $81.70 and a 200-day moving average price of $79.48. Service Co. International has a 12-month low of $64.10 and a 12-month high of $89.37.

Service Co. International Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 13th were paid a $0.31 dividend. This is a boost from Service Co. International’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 13th. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.59%. Service Co. International’s dividend payout ratio is 34.88%.

Insider Activity at Service Co. International

In other Service Co. International news, Director Tony Coelho sold 2,555 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.64, for a total value of $218,810.20. Following the transaction, the director now owns 53,324 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,566,667.36. The trade was a 4.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Elisabeth G. Nash sold 56,100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $86.13, for a total transaction of $4,831,893.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 109,260 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,410,563.80. This trade represents a 33.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 108,655 shares of company stock valued at $9,356,203. Insiders own 5.10% of the company’s stock.

Service Co. International 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.