Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC Increases Position in Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI)

Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC increased its stake in Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI - Free Report) by 688.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 44,715 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 39,045 shares during the quarter. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC's holdings in Service Co. International were worth $3,569,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Service Co. International in the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Quarry LP lifted its position in Service Co. International by 359.8% during the fourth quarter. Quarry LP now owns 469 shares of the company's stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 367 shares during the last quarter. Mizuho Bank Ltd. acquired a new stake in Service Co. International in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Service Co. International during the fourth quarter worth $40,000. Finally, Vision Financial Markets LLC purchased a new position in Service Co. International during the 4th quarter worth $52,000. Institutional investors own 85.53% of the company's stock.

Service Co. International Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:SCI traded down $0.70 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $76.12. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,217,948 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,054,761. The company has a quick ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.83. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $78.52 and a 200 day moving average of $80.22. Service Co. International has a twelve month low of $67.82 and a twelve month high of $89.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.97 billion, a PE ratio of 21.44, a P/E/G ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 0.96.

Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The company reported $0.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.91 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $1.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.06 billion. Service Co. International had a return on equity of 32.18% and a net margin of 12.39%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 2.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.89 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Service Co. International will post 3.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Service Co. International Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 13th will be given a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.68%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 13th. Service Co. International's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 35.16%.

Insider Activity at Service Co. International

In related news, CEO Thomas L. Ryan sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $84.56, for a total value of $4,228,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 982,333 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $83,066,078.48. This trade represents a 4.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Tony Coelho sold 6,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $79.29, for a total value of $515,385.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 46,824 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,712,674.96. The trade was a 12.19 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 4.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SCI has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of Service Co. International from $90.00 to $88.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 2nd. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Service Co. International from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Service Co. International presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $89.25.

About Service Co. 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.