Innospec (NASDAQ:IOSP) Reaches New 12-Month High – Time to Buy?

Innospec Inc. (NASDAQ:IOSP)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday. The company traded as high as $100.48 and last traded at $97.88, with a volume of 284659 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $98.72.

Analyst Ratings Changes

IOSP has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Wall Street Zen lowered Innospec from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, September 26th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Innospec from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Finally, Seaport Research Partners reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $110.00 price target on shares of Innospec in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Innospec currently has a consensus rating of “Hold”.

Innospec Stock Performance

The firm has a market cap of $2.35 billion, a PE ratio of 19.45, a PEG ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.93. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $92.49 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $83.40.

Innospec (NASDAQ:IOSP) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 4th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.05 by $0.22. The firm had revenue of $491.40 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $457.25 million. Innospec had a net margin of 6.60% and a return on equity of 9.22%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.26 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that Innospec Inc. will post 5.03 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of IOSP. Allworth Financial LP lifted its holdings in Innospec by 40.9% in the 2nd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,310 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $107,000 after buying an additional 380 shares during the period. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. increased its stake in shares of Innospec by 125.4% during the fourth quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 728 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $56,000 after buying an additional 405 shares during the period. Hantz Financial Services Inc. increased its stake in shares of Innospec by 271.0% during the fourth quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 575 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $44,000 after buying an additional 420 shares during the period. Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Innospec during the second quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of Innospec by 3.6% during the first quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 12,716 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $929,000 after acquiring an additional 440 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 96.64% of the company’s stock.

Innospec Company Profile

Innospec Inc (NASDAQ: IOSP) is a global specialty chemicals company that develops, manufactures and supplies products used in the energy, transportation, personal care, household, agriculture and industrial markets. Its offerings are designed to improve product performance, support manufacturing processes and address specialized customer requirements.

The company operates through businesses focused on fuel specialties, performance chemicals and oilfield services. Its products include fuel additives and performance-enhancing chemicals for gasoline, diesel and other fuels, as well as ingredients and formulations used in personal care, home care, crop protection, construction, mining and other industrial applications.