Westwood Holdings Group Inc. Buys 3,352 Shares of Innospec Inc. (NASDAQ:IOSP)

Westwood Holdings Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Innospec Inc. (NASDAQ:IOSP - Free Report) by 1.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 298,096 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after buying an additional 3,352 shares during the period. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. owned 1.20% of Innospec worth $32,808,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Pacer Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Innospec in the 4th quarter valued at $53,457,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Innospec in the 4th quarter valued at $20,992,000. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Innospec in the 4th quarter valued at $11,312,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its position in shares of Innospec by 17.3% during the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 312,880 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $34,436,000 after purchasing an additional 46,192 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC increased its position in shares of Innospec by 357.1% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 44,559 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $5,039,000 after purchasing an additional 34,811 shares in the last quarter. 96.64% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Leslie J. Parrette sold 446 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.63, for a total value of $40,420.98. Following the transaction, the director now owns 5,497 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $498,193.11. This trade represents a 7.50% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Corbin Barnes sold 598 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.06, for a total transaction of $61,629.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 8,051 shares in the company, valued at $829,736.06. This trade represents a 6.91% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.31% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Seaport Res Ptn raised shares of Innospec from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, April 21st. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Innospec from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 6th.

Innospec Stock Down 0.7%

NASDAQ:IOSP traded down $0.57 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $85.58. 126,310 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 154,383. Innospec Inc. has a 12 month low of $80.32 and a 12 month high of $133.53. The company has a fifty day moving average of $90.27 and a 200 day moving average of $103.92. The stock has a market cap of $2.14 billion, a PE ratio of 60.27 and a beta of 1.11.

Innospec (NASDAQ:IOSP - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.42 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.40 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $440.80 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $466.50 million. Innospec had a net margin of 1.93% and a return on equity of 12.27%. The company's revenue was down 11.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.75 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Innospec Inc. will post 6.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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

Innospec Increases Dividend

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

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.