Service Corporation International (NYSE:SCI) Short Interest Up 22.7% in March

Service Corporation International (NYSE:SCI) saw a significant increase in short interest in March. As of March 13th, there was short interest totaling 5,647,851 shares, an increase of 22.7% from the February 26th total of 4,602,127 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,143,751 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 4.9 days. Currently, 4.3% of the company’s stock are short sold.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have issued reports on SCI. JPMorgan Chase & Co. began coverage on Service Corporation International in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $110.00 target price for the company. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Service Corporation International from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 21st. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Service Corporation International from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $96.50.

Service Corporation International Stock Performance

Shares of Service Corporation International stock traded up $0.79 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $83.30. The company had a trading volume of 292,321 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,142,613. Service Corporation International has a 1-year low of $71.75 and a 1-year high of $86.67. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $80.82 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $80.39. The stock has a market cap of $11.55 billion, a PE ratio of 21.91, a P/E/G ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.10, a current ratio of 0.55 and a quick ratio of 0.50.

Service Corporation International (NYSE:SCI) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The company reported $1.14 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.14. Service Corporation International had a net margin of 12.59% and a return on equity of 34.21%. The firm had revenue of $1.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.12 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.06 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 1.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that Service Corporation International will post 3.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Service Corporation International Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 13th were given a dividend of $0.34 per share. This is an increase from Service Corporation International’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 13th. Service Corporation International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 35.79%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Tammy R. Moore sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.48, for a total transaction of $402,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 21,654 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,742,713.92. This represents a 18.76% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Tony Coelho sold 7,700 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $79.87, for a total value of $614,999.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 28,388 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,267,349.56. This represents a 21.34% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 4.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Service Corporation International

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brighton Jones LLC bought a new stake in shares of Service Corporation International in the 4th quarter worth approximately $435,000. Royal Bank of Canada increased its position in shares of Service Corporation International by 38.8% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 121,883 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,775,000 after purchasing an additional 34,051 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Service Corporation International by 48.7% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 417,387 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,474,000 after purchasing an additional 136,770 shares in the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth lifted its position in Service Corporation International by 3.1% in the first quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 10,571 shares of the company’s stock worth $848,000 after purchasing an additional 321 shares during the period. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Service Corporation International by 309.8% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,561 shares of the company’s stock worth $208,000 after buying an additional 1,936 shares in the last quarter. 85.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Service Corporation International

Service Corporation International (NYSE: SCI) is a leading provider of funeral, cremation and cemetery services in North America. Through its network of funeral homes, cemeteries, memorial parks and crematoria, the company offers a broad array of end-of-life services, including traditional funeral ceremonies, memorialization, burial and cremation. In addition to core services, SCI provides grief counseling, pre-need planning and merchandise such as caskets, vaults, urns and memorialization products.

Headquartered in Houston, Texas, Service Corporation International operates more than 1,900 funeral homes, over 450 cemeteries and 40 combination facilities across the United States and Canada.