Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI) Increases Dividend to $0.31 Per Share

Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI) announced a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, November 6th, RTT News reports. Investors of record on Friday, December 13th will be given a dividend of 0.31 per share on Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.43%. This is a boost from Service Co. International’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30.

Service Co. International has raised its dividend payment by an average of 12.8% annually over the last three years and has raised its dividend every year for the last 14 years. Service Co. International has a dividend payout ratio of 30.3% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Analysts expect Service Co. International to earn $3.92 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.20 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 30.6%.

Service Co. International Trading Up 3.3 %

SCI traded up $2.78 on Wednesday, reaching $86.50. 756,941 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 905,872. The company has a market cap of $12.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.35, a PEG ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.91, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a current ratio of 0.52. Service Co. International has a twelve month low of $57.03 and a twelve month high of $86.62. The company’s 50 day moving average is $77.86 and its 200-day moving average is $74.38.

Service Co. International (NYSE:SCI) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $0.79 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.79. Service Co. International had a net margin of 12.19% and a return on equity of 31.84%. The business had revenue of $1.01 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.02 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.78 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that Service Co. International will post 3.51 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Service Co. International

In other news, Director Ellen Ochoa sold 2,642 shares of Service Co. International stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.41, for a total value of $201,875.22. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Company insiders own 4.60% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on SCI shares. Raymond James lifted their price target on shares of Service Co. International from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Truist Financial lifted their price target on shares of Service Co. International from $84.00 to $92.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, StockNews.com raised Service Co. International from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Service Co. International currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $85.25.

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.