Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. Cuts Stake in Balchem Co. (NASDAQ:BCPC)

Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. trimmed its holdings in shares of Balchem Co. (NASDAQ:BCPC) by 4.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 6,230 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 270 shares during the period. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co.’s holdings in Balchem were worth $1,015,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Westside Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Balchem in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,000. R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in Balchem during the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new stake in Balchem during the 3rd quarter valued at $35,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Balchem in the 4th quarter valued at $95,000. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of Balchem by 230.8% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 645 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $106,000 after acquiring an additional 450 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.91% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

BCPC has been the topic of several analyst reports. Sidoti upgraded Balchem to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Balchem from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and set a $190.00 target price on shares of Balchem in a research report on Monday, February 24th.

Balchem Trading Down 1.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ:BCPC opened at $163.79 on Monday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $165.26 and its 200 day moving average is $169.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a current ratio of 1.99 and a quick ratio of 1.16. Balchem Co. has a 1 year low of $137.69 and a 1 year high of $186.03. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.68, a P/E/G ratio of 4.41 and a beta of 0.63.

Balchem (NASDAQ:BCPC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 21st. The basic materials company reported $1.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.11 by ($0.08). The company had revenue of $240.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $239.96 million. Balchem had a net margin of 13.47% and a return on equity of 11.37%. On average, research analysts predict that Balchem Co. will post 4.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.