Balchem (NASDAQ:BCPC) Reaches New 1-Year High at $183.84

Balchem Co. (NASDAQ:BCPC) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $183.84 and last traded at $182.67, with a volume of 9460 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $180.78.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have commented on BCPC. StockNews.com upgraded Balchem from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 10th. HC Wainwright upped their price target on Balchem from $167.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, May 6th.

Balchem Trading Up 0.4 %

The company has a current ratio of 2.83, a quick ratio of 1.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $158.84 and a 200 day moving average of $152.44. The company has a market cap of $5.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 51.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.82 and a beta of 0.68.

Balchem (NASDAQ:BCPC) last announced its earnings results on Friday, May 3rd. The basic materials company reported $0.89 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.94 by ($0.05). The business had revenue of $239.66 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $234.12 million. Balchem had a net margin of 12.52% and a return on equity of 10.94%. On average, analysts predict that Balchem Co. will post 3.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director David B. Fischer sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $152.98, for a total transaction of $764,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 9,009 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,378,196.82. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Balchem news, Director David B. Fischer sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $152.98, for a total transaction of $764,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 9,009 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,378,196.82. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Michael Robert Sestrick sold 1,929 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $154.45, for a total value of $297,934.05. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 4,878 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $753,407.10. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.25% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Balchem

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. grew its holdings in Balchem by 1.5% during the second quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 3,926 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $604,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in Balchem by 18.0% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 473 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $73,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares during the period. Cardinal Capital Management boosted its holdings in shares of Balchem by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Cardinal Capital Management now owns 19,539 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,922,000 after acquiring an additional 79 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Balchem by 123.0% in the fourth quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 165 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 91 shares during the period. Finally, Pitcairn Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Balchem by 3.6% in the first quarter. Pitcairn Co. now owns 3,315 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $514,000 after acquiring an additional 115 shares during the period. 87.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.