Argent Capital Management LLC Raises Stock Holdings in Balchem Co. (NASDAQ:BCPC)

Argent Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Balchem Co. (NASDAQ:BCPC) by 39.1% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 5,821 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after buying an additional 1,636 shares during the period. Argent Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Balchem were worth $949,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Inspire Investing LLC grew its stake in shares of Balchem by 2.7% in the third quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 2,348 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $413,000 after acquiring an additional 62 shares during the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC lifted its holdings in shares of Balchem by 1.5% during the second quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 4,915 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $757,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Balchem by 6.1% during the third quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,674 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $295,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Xponance Inc. lifted its holdings in Balchem by 5.2% in the second quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 2,046 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $315,000 after acquiring an additional 102 shares during the period. Finally, Benjamin Edwards Inc. lifted its holdings in Balchem by 6.6% in the second quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 2,231 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $344,000 after acquiring an additional 138 shares during the period. 87.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Balchem Trading Up 1.0 %

Shares of NASDAQ BCPC opened at $160.18 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.90, a current ratio of 2.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $171.30 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $170.80. The firm has a market cap of $5.21 billion, a PE ratio of 43.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.32 and a beta of 0.69. Balchem Co. has a twelve month low of $135.84 and a twelve month high of $186.03.

Balchem Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced an annual dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 17th. Investors of record on Thursday, December 26th will be paid a dividend of $0.87 per share. This represents a yield of 0.4%. This is an increase from Balchem’s previous annual dividend of $0.79. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, December 26th. Balchem’s payout ratio is 23.39%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BCPC has been the topic of several recent research reports. HC Wainwright raised their price objective on Balchem from $185.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. StockNews.com upgraded Balchem from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, October 28th.

About Balchem

Balchem Corporation develops, manufactures, and markets specialty performance ingredients and products for the nutritional, food, pharmaceutical, animal health, medical device sterilization, plant nutrition, and industrial markets worldwide. It operates through three segments: Human Nutrition and Health, Animal Nutrition and Health, and Specialty Products.