Strs Ohio Cuts Stake in Balchem Co. (NASDAQ:BCPC)

Strs Ohio lessened its stake in shares of Balchem Co. (NASDAQ:BCPC - Free Report) by 30.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 29,000 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 12,600 shares during the period. Strs Ohio owned about 0.09% of Balchem worth $4,313,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. BlackRock Inc. lifted its position in shares of Balchem by 1.0% during the first quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 4,890,972 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $668,595,000 after acquiring an additional 46,959 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Balchem by 7.3% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,862,027 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $469,545,000 after acquiring an additional 261,534 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its position in Balchem by 2.1% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,109,115 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $149,520,000 after acquiring an additional 23,065 shares during the last quarter. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Balchem by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,083,212 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $161,128,000 after purchasing an additional 6,885 shares during the period. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of Balchem by 1.0% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 661,893 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $83,715,000 after acquiring an additional 6,576 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.91% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, StockNews.com raised Balchem from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 21st.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO William A. Backus sold 9,180 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.37, for a total transaction of $1,435,476.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 12,914 shares in the company, valued at $2,019,362.18. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, CAO William A. Backus sold 9,180 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $156.37, for a total value of $1,435,476.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 12,914 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,019,362.18. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Michael Robert Sestrick sold 11,100 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.21, for a total value of $1,700,631.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 6,736 shares in the company, valued at $1,032,022.56. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 76,630 shares of company stock worth $11,843,249. Insiders own 1.77% of the company's stock.

Balchem Stock Up 0.3 %

BCPC traded up $0.36 during trading on Friday, reaching $143.48. The stock had a trading volume of 94,637 shares, compared to its average volume of 104,999. The company has a current ratio of 2.12, a quick ratio of 1.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The company has a market capitalization of $4.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.83, a P/E/G ratio of 4.34 and a beta of 0.71. The stock's 50 day moving average is $152.39 and its two-hundred day moving average is $139.36. Balchem Co. has a one year low of $110.74 and a one year high of $159.52.

Balchem (NASDAQ:BCPC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 16th. The basic materials company reported $0.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.93 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $228.70 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $234.66 million. Balchem had a net margin of 11.77% and a return on equity of 10.69%. Balchem's quarterly revenue was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.66 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Balchem Co. will post 4.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Balchem Company Profile

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.