AlphaQuest LLC Has $1.39 Million Stake in Innospec Inc. (NASDAQ:IOSP)

AlphaQuest LLC boosted its position in shares of Innospec Inc. (NASDAQ:IOSP) by 4,063.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 12,656 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after buying an additional 12,352 shares during the period. AlphaQuest LLC’s holdings in Innospec were worth $1,393,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its stake in Innospec by 8.8% during the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 1,868 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $206,000 after buying an additional 151 shares in the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC grew its stake in Innospec by 5.2% during the third quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 3,103 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $350,000 after buying an additional 154 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. grew its stake in Innospec by 7.9% during the third quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 2,106 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $238,000 after buying an additional 155 shares in the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans grew its stake in Innospec by 0.3% during the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 59,602 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $6,740,000 after buying an additional 195 shares in the last quarter. Finally, New York State Teachers Retirement System grew its stake in Innospec by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System now owns 14,981 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $1,649,000 after buying an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. 96.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Innospec Trading Up 1.1 %

IOSP opened at $100.62 on Monday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $108.89 and its 200-day moving average is $111.94. Innospec Inc. has a 1-year low of $97.13 and a 1-year high of $133.71. The company has a market cap of $2.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 70.86 and a beta of 1.08.

Innospec (NASDAQ:IOSP) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.41 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.36 by $0.05. Innospec had a net margin of 1.93% and a return on equity of 12.27%. The company had revenue of $466.80 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $447.43 million. On average, equities analysts forecast that Innospec Inc. will post 6.18 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Philip John Boon sold 3,754 shares of Innospec stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.30, for a total transaction of $387,788.20. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 20,079 shares in the company, valued at $2,074,160.70. This trade represents a 15.75 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Corbin Barnes sold 2,692 shares of Innospec stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.30, for a total transaction of $278,083.60. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 8,051 shares in the company, valued at approximately $831,668.30. This represents a 25.06 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 7,696 shares of company stock worth $794,853. Corporate insiders own 1.52% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Innospec from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday.

Innospec Company 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.