Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC Increases Stock Holdings in Balchem Co. (NASDAQ:BCPC)

Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC increased its position in shares of Balchem Co. (NASDAQ:BCPC) by 8.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 36,616 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,865 shares during the period. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC owned approximately 0.11% of Balchem worth $5,968,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of BCPC. Westside Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Balchem during the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. R Squared Ltd bought a new position in Balchem in the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new stake in shares of Balchem in the 3rd quarter valued at about $35,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Balchem during the 4th quarter valued at about $95,000. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Balchem by 230.8% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 645 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $106,000 after purchasing an additional 450 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.91% of the company’s stock.

Balchem Trading Up 1.1 %

BCPC stock opened at $165.20 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $5.37 billion, a PE ratio of 42.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.41 and a beta of 0.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a current ratio of 1.99. Balchem Co. has a one year low of $137.69 and a one year high of $186.03. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $165.07 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $169.28.

Balchem (NASDAQ:BCPC) last issued its earnings results on Friday, February 21st. The basic materials company reported $1.03 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.11 by ($0.08). Balchem had a return on equity of 11.37% and a net margin of 13.47%. The business had revenue of $240.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $239.96 million. As a group, analysts predict that Balchem Co. will post 4.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on BCPC shares. HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $190.00 target price on shares of Balchem in a research report on Monday, February 24th. StockNews.com cut Balchem from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, Sidoti raised Balchem to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th.

Balchem Company Profile

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.