Empowered Funds LLC Purchases 4,174 Shares of Service Corporation International $SCI

Key Points

• Empowered Funds LLC raised its stake in Service Corporation International by 11.2%, now owning 41,580 shares valued at $3,335,000.
• Service Corporation International recently disclosed a quarterly dividend of $0.32, with a yield of 1.6%, to be paid on September 30th.
• Analysts have a consensus "Buy" rating for SCI, with price targets raised to between $90.00 and $91.00 by firms like Raymond James and Oppenheimer.

Empowered Funds LLC raised its holdings in Service Corporation International (NYSE:SCI - Free Report) by 11.2% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 41,580 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 4,174 shares during the quarter. Empowered Funds LLC's holdings in Service Corporation International were worth $3,335,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. United Services Automobile Association acquired a new stake in Service Corporation International during the 1st quarter worth about $767,000. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Service Corporation International by 31.8% during the 1st quarter. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,119 shares of the company's stock worth $330,000 after buying an additional 993 shares during the period. Great Lakes Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Service Corporation International by 2.4% during the 1st quarter. Great Lakes Advisors LLC now owns 27,266 shares of the company's stock worth $2,187,000 after buying an additional 636 shares during the period. Caxton Associates LLP acquired a new stake in Service Corporation International during the 1st quarter worth about $1,141,000. Finally, Sciencast Management LP acquired a new stake in Service Corporation International during the 1st quarter worth about $722,000. 85.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Thomas L. Ryan sold 150,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.49, for a total value of $12,073,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 982,333 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $79,067,983.17. This represents a 13.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, President Sumner J. Waring III sold 56,100 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.57, for a total value of $4,295,577.00. Following the completion of the sale, the president directly owned 295,192 shares of the company's stock, valued at $22,602,851.44. This represents a 15.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 252,082 shares of company stock worth $20,117,233. 4.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Service Corporation International Stock Up 0.7%

Shares of NYSE SCI traded up $0.55 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $80.27. The company had a trading volume of 174,104 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,122,853. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $79.18 and a two-hundred day moving average of $78.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.19, a quick ratio of 0.56 and a current ratio of 0.61. The company has a market capitalization of $11.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.75, a PEG ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 0.90. Service Corporation International has a 12-month low of $71.75 and a 12-month high of $89.37.

Service Corporation International (NYSE:SCI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $0.88 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.84 by $0.04. Service Corporation International had a return on equity of 32.84% and a net margin of 12.60%.The firm had revenue of $1.07 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.05 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.79 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. Service Corporation International has set its FY 2025 guidance at 3.700-4.00 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Service Corporation International will post 3.84 EPS for the current year.

Service Corporation International Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. Service Corporation International's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 34.69%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on Service Corporation International from $86.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, August 21st. Raymond James Financial restated an "outperform" rating and set a $90.00 price objective (up previously from $85.00) on shares of Service Corporation International in a report on Monday, August 4th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $90.25.

About Service Corporation 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.