Franklin Resources Inc. Acquires 2,154 Shares of Innospec Inc. (NASDAQ:IOSP)

Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its holdings in Innospec Inc. (NASDAQ:IOSP) by 8.6% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 27,282 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,154 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. owned about 0.11% of Innospec worth $3,116,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Innospec by 503.9% in the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 779 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $96,000 after acquiring an additional 650 shares in the last quarter. nVerses Capital LLC grew its stake in Innospec by 200.0% in the third quarter. nVerses Capital LLC now owns 900 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $102,000 after purchasing an additional 600 shares in the last quarter. Point72 DIFC Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Innospec during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $184,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. bought a new stake in shares of Innospec during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $215,000. Finally, Sanctuary Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Innospec in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $233,000. 96.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other Innospec news, Director Milton C. Blackmore sold 1,035 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $122.92, for a total value of $127,222.20. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 9,028 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,109,721.76. This represents a 10.29 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.52% of the company’s stock.

Innospec Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:IOSP opened at $111.32 on Thursday. Innospec Inc. has a 52-week low of $103.97 and a 52-week high of $133.71. The company has a market capitalization of $2.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.43 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $115.34 and a 200 day simple moving average of $116.53.

Innospec (NASDAQ:IOSP) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 5th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35. The company had revenue of $443.40 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $442.13 million. Innospec had a return on equity of 13.33% and a net margin of 7.68%. The business’s revenue was down 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.59 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Innospec Inc. will post 5.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Innospec Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a Semi-Annual dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, November 26th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 18th were issued a $0.79 dividend. This is an increase from Innospec’s previous Semi-Annual dividend of $0.72. This represents a dividend yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 18th. Innospec’s payout ratio is currently 27.57%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, StockNews.com lowered shares of Innospec from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th.

Innospec Profile

Innospec Inc develops, manufactures, blends, markets, and supplies specialty chemicals in the United States, rest of North America, the United Kingdom, rest of Europe, and internationally. The company's Fuel Specialties segment offers a range of specialty chemical products that are used as additives in additives in diesel, jet, marine, fuel oil and other fuels.