Nordea Investment Management AB Sells 26,798 Shares of Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI)

Nordea Investment Management AB lowered its stake in shares of Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI - Free Report) by 2.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 917,859 shares of the company's stock after selling 26,798 shares during the quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB owned about 0.62% of Service Co. International worth $62,910,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. InTrack Investment Management Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Service Co. International in the 4th quarter valued at about $205,000. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV grew its stake in Service Co. International by 204.1% in the 4th quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 599 shares of the company's stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 402 shares in the last quarter. M&R Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Service Co. International by 125.5% in the 4th quarter. M&R Capital Management Inc. now owns 902 shares of the company's stock worth $62,000 after buying an additional 502 shares during the last quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky raised its position in Service Co. International by 87.4% in the 3rd quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky now owns 53,466 shares of the company's stock worth $3,055,000 after purchasing an additional 24,941 shares during the period. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. grew its holdings in Service Co. International by 5.8% in the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 26,592 shares of the company's stock worth $1,519,000 after acquiring an additional 1,462 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.99% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Thomas L. Ryan sold 75,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.53, for a total value of $5,514,750.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 988,365 shares in the company, valued at $72,674,478.45. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other news, CEO Thomas L. Ryan sold 75,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.53, for a total transaction of $5,514,750.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 988,365 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $72,674,478.45. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Steven A. Tidwell sold 45,995 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.43, for a total value of $3,469,402.85. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 54,354 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,099,922.22. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 202,675 shares of company stock worth $15,066,906 in the last three months. 5.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Service Co. International Trading Up 0.9 %

NYSE:SCI traded up $0.68 on Wednesday, reaching $73.80. 714,987 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 870,147. Service Co. International has a 52-week low of $52.89 and a 52-week high of $75.97. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a quick ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.02. The business has a fifty day moving average of $70.44 and a 200-day moving average of $64.24.

Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 13th. The company reported $0.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.91 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $1.06 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.02 billion. Service Co. International had a return on equity of 32.88% and a net margin of 13.11%. Service Co. International's revenue was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.92 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Service Co. International will post 3.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Service Co. International Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 15th will be given a dividend of $0.30 per share. This is a positive change from Service Co. International's previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.63%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 14th. Service Co. International's dividend payout ratio is currently 32.95%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on SCI shares. Oppenheimer lifted their target price on shares of Service Co. International from $71.00 to $76.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, February 16th. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Service Co. International from $72.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $75.00.

About Service Co. International

Service Corporation International provides deathcare products and services in the United States and Canada. Its funeral service and cemetery operations comprise funeral service locations, cemeteries, funeral service/cemetery combination locations, crematoria, and other businesses. The company also provides professional services related to funerals and cremations, including the use of funeral home facilities and motor vehicles; arranging and directing services; and removal, preparation, embalming, cremation, memorialization, and travel protection, as well as catering services.