California State Teachers Retirement System Has $3.98 Million Stock Holdings in NewMarket Co. (NYSE:NEU)

California State Teachers Retirement System boosted its position in shares of NewMarket Co. (NYSE:NEU - Free Report) by 11.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,524 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after purchasing an additional 749 shares during the period. California State Teachers Retirement System owned about 0.08% of NewMarket worth $3,975,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of NEU. Bessemer Group Inc. grew its position in NewMarket by 166.7% in the fourth quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 48 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Centricity Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of NewMarket during the 4th quarter worth about $56,000. Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda bought a new position in shares of NewMarket in the 4th quarter valued at about $59,000. Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in shares of NewMarket by 55.3% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 118 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $65,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC bought a new stake in NewMarket during the fourth quarter worth about $74,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 61.09% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Bruce R. Hazelgrove III sold 311 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $642.43, for a total value of $199,795.73. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 358 shares in the company, valued at approximately $229,989.94. This represents a 46.49% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 19.10% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Wall Street Zen downgraded NewMarket from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th.

NewMarket Stock Up 0.1%

NEU traded up $0.85 during trading on Friday, reaching $639.88. 354,396 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 38,286. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 1.40 and a current ratio of 2.75. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $602.86 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $554.74. NewMarket Co. has a twelve month low of $480.00 and a twelve month high of $653.71. The stock has a market cap of $6.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.27 and a beta of 0.41.

NewMarket (NYSE:NEU - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The specialty chemicals company reported $13.26 earnings per share for the quarter. NewMarket had a net margin of 16.59% and a return on equity of 35.48%. The company had revenue of $700.95 million for the quarter.

NewMarket Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be given a $2.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 16th. This represents a $11.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.72%. NewMarket's payout ratio is 21.89%.

NewMarket Company Profile

NewMarket Corporation, through its subsidiaries, primarily engages in the manufacture and sale of petroleum additives. The company offers lubricant additives for use in various vehicle and industrial applications, including engine oils, transmission fluids, off-road powertrain and hydraulic systems, gear oils, hydraulic oils, turbine oils, and other applications where metal-to-metal moving parts are utilized; engine oil additives designed for passenger cars, motorcycles, on and off-road heavy duty commercial equipment, locomotives, and engines in ocean-going vessels; driveline additives designed for products, such as transmission fluids, axle fluids, and off-road powertrain fluids; and industrial additives designed for products for industrial applications consisting of hydraulic fluids, grease, industrial gear fluids, and industrial specialty applications, such as turbine oils.