Innospec (NASDAQ:IOSP) Upgraded to Buy at Wall Street Zen

Innospec (NASDAQ:IOSP) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report released on Saturday.

Other equities research analysts have also issued reports about the company. Weiss Ratings upgraded Innospec from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a report on Friday, May 29th. Zacks Research upgraded Innospec from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold”.

Innospec Stock Performance

IOSP opened at $80.68 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $77.35 and a 200 day moving average price of $77.42. Innospec has a twelve month low of $65.51 and a twelve month high of $92.14. The firm has a market cap of $1.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 0.92.

Innospec (NASDAQ:IOSP) last posted its earnings results on Friday, May 8th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.05 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.02 by $0.03. Innospec had a return on equity of 9.32% and a net margin of 6.38%.The firm had revenue of $453.20 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $432.14 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.42 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that Innospec will post 4.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Innospec by 32.5% during the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 8,625 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $630,000 after buying an additional 2,114 shares during the last quarter. Amundi lifted its holdings in shares of Innospec by 71.0% during the first quarter. Amundi now owns 8,875 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $648,000 after buying an additional 3,686 shares during the last quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System raised its stake in shares of Innospec by 15.7% in the first quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 27,529 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $2,010,000 after purchasing an additional 3,729 shares in the last quarter. Entropy Technologies LP raised its stake in shares of Innospec by 33.3% in the first quarter. Entropy Technologies LP now owns 19,968 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $1,458,000 after purchasing an additional 4,989 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its stake in shares of Innospec by 196.5% in the first quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 18,497 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $1,351,000 after purchasing an additional 12,259 shares in the last quarter. 96.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Innospec

Innospec Incorporated (NASDAQ: IOSP) is a global specialty chemicals company headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio. The company operates through three principal business segments: Fuel Specialties, Oilfield Services, and Performance Chemicals. In the Fuel Specialties segment, Innospec develops and supplies additives designed to enhance octane levels, improve combustion efficiency, reduce emissions and prevent deposit formation in gasoline and diesel engines. Its Oilfield Services division provides chemical technologies—such as surfactants, corrosion inhibitors and demulsifiers—to support exploration, drilling, production optimization and enhanced oil recovery operations.