Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC Has $206.90 Million Stock Holdings in Balchem Co. (NASDAQ:BCPC)

Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC lifted its position in Balchem Co. (NASDAQ:BCPC) by 1.8% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 1,175,569 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 20,360 shares during the period. Balchem makes up about 2.8% of Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 14th largest holding. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Balchem were worth $206,900,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of BCPC. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Balchem by 3.8% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,935,935 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $609,873,000 after purchasing an additional 144,423 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its holdings in shares of Balchem by 32.2% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 193,146 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $29,929,000 after buying an additional 47,036 shares during the last quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. raised its stake in Balchem by 12.4% during the 3rd quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 301,440 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $53,053,000 after purchasing an additional 33,373 shares during the last quarter. Watts Gwilliam & Co. LLC acquired a new stake in Balchem in the 3rd quarter worth $3,639,000. Finally, William Blair Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Balchem by 8.4% during the 2nd quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 233,831 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $35,998,000 after purchasing an additional 18,104 shares during the period. 87.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently weighed in on BCPC. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Balchem from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday. HC Wainwright upped their target price on Balchem from $170.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st.

Balchem Price Performance

BCPC traded down $0.04 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $167.29. 122,502 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 107,067. Balchem Co. has a one year low of $116.84 and a one year high of $186.03. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 44.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.17 and a beta of 0.65. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $171.75 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $162.75. The company has a quick ratio of 1.90, a current ratio of 2.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21.

Balchem Company Profile

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.