Merit Financial Group LLC Raises Stock Position in Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI)

Merit Financial Group LLC raised its position in shares of Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI - Free Report) by 25.4% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 32,445 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 6,582 shares during the quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC's holdings in Service Co. International were worth $2,602,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of SCI. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in Service Co. International during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Quarry LP boosted its position in Service Co. International by 359.8% during the 4th quarter. Quarry LP now owns 469 shares of the company's stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 367 shares in the last quarter. Mizuho Bank Ltd. bought a new stake in Service Co. International during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in Service Co. International during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Finally, Vision Financial Markets LLC bought a new stake in Service Co. International during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $52,000. 85.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Tony Coelho sold 5,400 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.94, for a total value of $410,076.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 43,938 shares in the company, valued at $3,336,651.72. This represents a 10.94% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders own 4.40% of the company's stock.

Service Co. International Stock Up 0.8%

Shares of NYSE SCI traded up $0.60 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $79.84. The stock had a trading volume of 1,013,709 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,074,499. The business's 50 day moving average is $77.33 and its 200-day moving average is $79.39. The company has a market cap of $11.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.49, a PEG ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 0.92. Service Co. International has a 52 week low of $68.84 and a 52 week high of $89.37. The company has a quick ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.83.

Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The company reported $0.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.91 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $1.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.06 billion. Service Co. International had a return on equity of 32.18% and a net margin of 12.39%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 2.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.89 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Service Co. International will post 3.84 EPS for the current year.

Service Co. International Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.32 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 13th. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.60%. Service Co. International's payout ratio is 35.16%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have weighed in on SCI shares. UBS Group cut their price objective on Service Co. International from $90.00 to $88.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Wall Street Zen upgraded Service Co. International from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $89.25.

About Service Co. International

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.