T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. Boosts Stock Position in Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI)

T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI - Free Report) by 5.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 8,952,636 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 492,822 shares during the period. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. owned about 6.19% of Service Co. International worth $714,600,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in shares of Service Co. International by 263.1% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 15,912 shares of the company's stock worth $1,206,000 after purchasing an additional 11,530 shares during the last quarter. Atlas Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Service Co. International during the 4th quarter valued at about $340,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its position in Service Co. International by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 185,277 shares of the company's stock valued at $14,348,000 after buying an additional 3,375 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in Service Co. International by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 920,222 shares of the company's stock worth $73,452,000 after acquiring an additional 5,074 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. bought a new position in Service Co. International in the 4th quarter worth about $3,229,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.53% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Thomas L. Ryan sold 50,000 shares of Service Co. International stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $84.56, for a total transaction of $4,228,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 982,333 shares in the company, valued at approximately $83,066,078.48. The trade was a 4.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 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 transaction, the director now directly owns 46,824 shares in the company, 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.

Service Co. International Stock Up 0.7 %

NYSE SCI traded up $0.57 on Monday, hitting $78.99. The stock had a trading volume of 360,295 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,241,522. The business's fifty day moving average price is $78.80 and its 200 day moving average price is $80.15. The stock has a market cap of $11.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.83, a current ratio of 0.52 and a quick ratio of 0.48. Service Co. International has a 52-week low of $67.19 and a 52-week high of $89.37.

Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $1.06 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.06. Service Co. International had a return on equity of 32.18% and a net margin of 12.39%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Service Co. International will post 3.84 earnings per share for the current year.

Service Co. International Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th were given a $0.32 dividend. This is a positive change from Service Co. International's previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.62%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. Service Co. International's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.06%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded Service Co. International from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Service Co. International has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $88.50.

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.