Premier Fund Managers Ltd Has $90.11 Million Position in Service Corporation International (NYSE:SCI)

Key Points

• Service Corporation International (NYSE:SCI) is now the 2nd largest position for Premier Fund Managers Ltd, which owns approximately 3.4% of the company after a minor reduction in shares.
• The company reported $0.96 EPS, surpassing analysts' expectations of $0.91, and achieved a net margin of 12.58% with a revenue of $1.07 billion for the latest quarter.
• Service Corporation International announced a quarterly dividend of $0.32 per share, resulting in an annualized dividend of $1.28 and a yield of 1.68%.

Premier Fund Managers Ltd cut its position in Service Corporation International (NYSE:SCI - Free Report) by 0.3% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 1,130,127 shares of the company's stock after selling 3,718 shares during the period. Service Corporation International comprises about 3.4% of Premier Fund Managers Ltd's portfolio, making the stock its 2nd largest position. Premier Fund Managers Ltd owned approximately 0.79% of Service Corporation International worth $90,111,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of SCI. Assetmark Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Service Corporation International by 225.9% during the 1st quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 352 shares of the company's stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 244 shares during the period. Quarry LP lifted its stake in Service Corporation International by 359.8% in the 4th quarter. Quarry LP now owns 469 shares of the company's stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 367 shares during the last quarter. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. bought a new position in Service Corporation International in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Mizuho Bank Ltd. acquired a new position in Service Corporation International in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Finally, GeoWealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Service Corporation International in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $53,000. 85.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Tony Coelho sold 5,400 shares of Service Corporation International stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.94, for a total value of $410,076.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 43,938 shares in the company, valued at $3,336,651.72. The trade was a 10.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 4.40% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

Service Corporation International Price Performance

SCI stock traded up $1.28 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $77.59. The company had a trading volume of 1,179,568 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,181,787. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.87, a current ratio of 0.51 and a quick ratio of 0.46. Service Corporation International has a 1 year low of $70.46 and a 1 year high of $89.37. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $79.00 and a 200-day moving average price of $78.46. The company has a market capitalization of $11.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.07, a P/E/G ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.92.

Service Corporation International (NYSE:SCI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $0.88 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.84 by $0.04. Service Corporation International had a net margin of 12.60% and a return on equity of 32.38%. The business had revenue of $1.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.05 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.79 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that Service Corporation International will post 3.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Service Corporation International Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 13th were paid a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 13th. Service Corporation International's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 34.69%.

Service Corporation International Company Profile

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.