D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. Purchases 24,863 Shares of Innospec Inc. (NASDAQ:IOSP)

D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. grew its position in Innospec Inc. (NASDAQ:IOSP - Free Report) by 188.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 38,032 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after buying an additional 24,863 shares during the period. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. owned approximately 0.15% of Innospec worth $4,186,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Deutsche Bank AG increased its position in shares of Innospec by 60.5% during the fourth quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 21,983 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $2,419,000 after acquiring an additional 8,286 shares in the last quarter. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC increased its holdings in shares of Innospec by 141.0% in the 4th quarter. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC now owns 43,647 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $4,804,000 after purchasing an additional 25,533 shares in the last quarter. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Innospec in the 4th quarter worth $826,000. Bank of America Corp DE raised its stake in shares of Innospec by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 233,454 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $25,694,000 after purchasing an additional 7,239 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Innospec by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 69,578 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $7,658,000 after purchasing an additional 778 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 96.64% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

IOSP has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. StockNews.com cut Innospec from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Seaport Res Ptn raised shares of Innospec from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, April 21st.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Philip John Boon sold 3,754 shares of Innospec stock in a transaction on Friday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.30, for a total transaction of $387,788.20. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 20,079 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,074,160.70. The trade was a 15.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Milton C. Blackmore sold 652 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.30, for a total value of $67,351.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 8,376 shares in the company, valued at $865,240.80. This trade represents a 7.22% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 8,142 shares of company stock valued at $835,274. 1.31% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Innospec Trading Down 2.7%

IOSP stock traded down $2.37 on Wednesday, hitting $85.96. The company had a trading volume of 194,377 shares, compared to its average volume of 153,934. Innospec Inc. has a 12-month low of $80.32 and a 12-month high of $133.53. The stock has a market cap of $2.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 60.54 and a beta of 1.11. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $91.03 and its 200 day simple moving average is $104.52.

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 for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.40 by $0.02. Innospec had a return on equity of 12.27% and a net margin of 1.93%. The firm had revenue of $440.80 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $466.50 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.75 EPS. The company's revenue was down 11.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Innospec Inc. will post 6.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Innospec Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 20th will be issued a $0.84 dividend. This is an increase from Innospec's previous semi-annual dividend of $0.79. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 20th. This represents a dividend yield of 1.7%. Innospec's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 155.56%.

Innospec declared that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Monday, March 10th that permits the company to repurchase $50.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the specialty chemicals company to repurchase up to 2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Innospec 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.