Empower Advisory Group LLC Purchases 3,189 Shares of Balchem Corporation (NASDAQ:BCPC)

Key Points

• Empower Advisory Group LLC increased its stake in Balchem Corporation by 2.8%, owning 119,057 shares worth approximately $19.76 million after the recent purchase of 3,189 additional shares.
• Several institutional investors, including Covestor Ltd and Versant Capital Management Inc, made significant increases to their stakes in Balchem, contributing to institutional ownership now totaling 87.91% of the company's stock.
• Balchem's financial performance included a quarterly earnings report of $1.27 EPS, exceeding analysts' expectations, and a 9.1% revenue growth compared to the same quarter last year.

Empower Advisory Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Balchem Corporation (NASDAQ:BCPC - Free Report) by 2.8% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 119,057 shares of the basic materials company's stock after buying an additional 3,189 shares during the period. Empower Advisory Group LLC owned approximately 0.37% of Balchem worth $19,763,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Balchem by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 938,504 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $153,000,000 after buying an additional 9,600 shares during the period. Geneva Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Balchem by 1.4% in the first quarter. Geneva Capital Management LLC now owns 830,813 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $137,915,000 after buying an additional 11,067 shares during the period. FMR LLC increased its position in shares of Balchem by 16.0% during the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 576,994 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $94,047,000 after acquiring an additional 79,499 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in shares of Balchem by 9.5% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 407,054 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $66,348,000 after acquiring an additional 35,152 shares during the period. Finally, Congress Asset Management Co. lifted its position in Balchem by 12.9% in the 1st quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 358,500 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $59,511,000 after acquiring an additional 40,890 shares in the last quarter. 87.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Balchem Trading Down 0.3%

Shares of NASDAQ:BCPC traded down $0.55 during trading on Thursday, reaching $159.45. The stock had a trading volume of 245,542 shares, compared to its average volume of 193,493. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a current ratio of 2.64. The firm's fifty day moving average is $159.30 and its 200 day moving average is $162.15. Balchem Corporation has a 52 week low of $145.70 and a 52 week high of $185.96. The stock has a market cap of $5.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.57, a P/E/G ratio of 3.42 and a beta of 0.88.

Balchem (NASDAQ:BCPC - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The basic materials company reported $1.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.25 by $0.02. Balchem had a return on equity of 12.41% and a net margin of 14.48%. The company had revenue of $255.47 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $250.31 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.09 EPS. Balchem's quarterly revenue was up 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Balchem Corporation will post 4.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BCPC has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. HC Wainwright boosted their price objective on shares of Balchem from $180.00 to $189.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday. Wall Street Zen cut Balchem from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, July 26th.

About Balchem

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.