7,502 Shares in Innospec Inc. (NASDAQ:IOSP) Bought by Brevan Howard Capital Management LP

Brevan Howard Capital Management LP acquired a new position in shares of Innospec Inc. (NASDAQ:IOSP - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 7,502 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock, valued at approximately $826,000.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Pacer Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Innospec during the 4th quarter valued at about $53,457,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Innospec during the 4th quarter valued at about $20,992,000. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Innospec during the 4th quarter valued at about $11,312,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in Innospec by 17.3% during the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 312,880 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $34,436,000 after purchasing an additional 46,192 shares during the period. Finally, Barclays PLC boosted its stake in Innospec by 357.1% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 44,559 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $5,039,000 after purchasing an additional 34,811 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 96.64% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com lowered shares of Innospec from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded shares of Innospec from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, April 21st.

Insider Transactions at Innospec

In related news, VP Philip John Boon sold 3,754 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.30, for a total value of $387,788.20. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 20,079 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,074,160.70. This represents a 15.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Corbin Barnes sold 598 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.06, for a total transaction of $61,629.88. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 8,051 shares of the company's stock, valued at $829,736.06. This represents a 6.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 7,696 shares of company stock valued at $794,853. 1.31% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Innospec Stock Down 2.1%

Shares of IOSP stock traded down $1.88 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $88.57. 74,066 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 199,706. Innospec Inc. has a 1-year low of $80.32 and a 1-year high of $133.59. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $92.05 and a 200 day moving average price of $105.24. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.22 billion, a PE ratio of 62.37 and a beta of 1.11.

Innospec (NASDAQ:IOSP - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.40 by $0.02. Innospec had a net margin of 1.93% and a return on equity of 12.27%. The business had revenue of $440.80 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $466.50 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.75 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was down 11.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Innospec Inc. will post 6.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Innospec Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 20th will be paid a $0.84 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 20th. This is an increase from Innospec's previous semi-annual dividend of $0.79. This represents a dividend yield of 1.7%. Innospec's dividend payout ratio is 155.56%.

Innospec announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Monday, March 10th that allows the company to repurchase $50.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the specialty chemicals company to repurchase up to 2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Innospec Company Profile

Innospec Inc develops, manufactures, blends, markets, and supplies specialty chemicals in the United States, rest of North America, the United Kingdom, rest of Europe, and internationally. The company's Fuel Specialties segment offers a range of specialty chemical products that are used as additives in additives in diesel, jet, marine, fuel oil and other fuels.