Balchem (NASDAQ:BCPC) Stock Price Down 85.3% – Should You Sell?

Balchem Co. (NASDAQ:BCPC) shares dropped 85.3% during trading on Friday . The company traded as low as $166.50 and last traded at $24.46. Approximately 7,701 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 94% from the average daily volume of 136,774 shares. The stock had previously closed at $166.50.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. StockNews.com cut Balchem from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Sidoti upgraded shares of Balchem to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating and issued a $190.00 price objective on shares of Balchem in a report on Monday, February 24th.

Balchem Trading Up 0.9 %

The business has a 50 day moving average price of $163.67 and a 200 day moving average price of $169.80. The company has a market capitalization of $5.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.76, a PEG ratio of 4.41 and a beta of 0.63. The company has a current ratio of 1.99, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19.

Balchem (NASDAQ:BCPC) last issued its earnings results on Friday, February 21st. The basic materials company reported $1.03 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.11 by ($0.08). The firm had revenue of $240.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $239.96 million. Balchem had a net margin of 13.47% and a return on equity of 11.37%. Analysts anticipate that Balchem Co. will post 4.64 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Balchem by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,961,487 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $645,703,000 after purchasing an additional 42,693 shares during the period. State Street Corp raised its holdings in Balchem by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,234,226 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $217,224,000 after buying an additional 12,006 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Balchem by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 938,504 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $153,000,000 after buying an additional 9,600 shares in the last quarter. Geneva Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Balchem by 5.1% in the fourth quarter. Geneva Capital Management LLC now owns 819,746 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $133,615,000 after buying an additional 39,877 shares during the period. Finally, FMR LLC increased its position in shares of Balchem by 16.0% during the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 576,994 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $94,047,000 after acquiring an additional 79,499 shares in the last quarter. 87.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Balchem

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.