Innospec (NASDAQ:IOSP) Downgraded by Zacks Research to “Strong Sell”

Innospec (NASDAQ:IOSP) was downgraded by equities researchers at Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report issued on Thursday,Zacks.com reports.

Other equities research analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Wall Street Zen raised Innospec from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, December 13th. Weiss Ratings raised Innospec from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Thursday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Reduce”.

Innospec Trading Down 1.7%

IOSP opened at $81.22 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.35 and a beta of 0.91. Innospec has a 12 month low of $70.10 and a 12 month high of $105.60. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $81.16 and its 200 day simple moving average is $79.31.

Innospec (NASDAQ:IOSP) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 17th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.26 by $0.24. The firm had revenue of $455.60 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $460.87 million. Innospec had a return on equity of 10.18% and a net margin of 6.56%.The company’s revenue was down 2.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.41 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Innospec will post 6.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in IOSP. Western Standard LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Innospec by 894.0% in the 4th quarter. Western Standard LLC now owns 268,367 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $20,541,000 after buying an additional 241,367 shares during the last quarter. Medina Value Partners LLC bought a new stake in Innospec during the third quarter worth $18,206,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its position in Innospec by 71.6% during the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 484,968 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $37,119,000 after acquiring an additional 202,325 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC lifted its stake in Innospec by 8,176.5% in the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 170,414 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $16,147,000 after acquiring an additional 168,355 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Innospec in the 4th quarter valued at about $10,654,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.64% of the company’s stock.

Innospec Company Profile

Innospec Incorporated (NASDAQ: IOSP) is a global specialty chemicals company headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio. The company operates through three principal business segments: Fuel Specialties, Oilfield Services, and Performance Chemicals. In the Fuel Specialties segment, Innospec develops and supplies additives designed to enhance octane levels, improve combustion efficiency, reduce emissions and prevent deposit formation in gasoline and diesel engines. Its Oilfield Services division provides chemical technologies—such as surfactants, corrosion inhibitors and demulsifiers—to support exploration, drilling, production optimization and enhanced oil recovery operations.