Oppenheimer analyst Scott Schneeberger reiterated a Buy rating on Service Corp International (NYSE: SCI) today and set a price target of $47. The company’s shares closed yesterday at $43.35, close to its 52-week high of $44.53.
Schneeberger commented:
“We anticipate SCI to deliver compelling 2H18-2019 results primarily via solid pre- need sales execution. Conservatively maintaining our 3Q18E adjusted EPS of $0.34, we’re modeling an accelerating mid-single digit Cemetery revenue growth rate via recognized pre-need sales, and a low-single digit Funeral revenue growth rate expecting acquisition contribution to more than offset lower/normalizing organic funeral volume following an elevated 1Q18 influenza impact. We’re drawn to industry- leader SCI’s long-term growth story, which stands to benefit from a multi-decade tailwind of an aging U.S. population increasingly pre-purchasing services/fueling the company’s financial backlog. Our report section “Trust Funds” highlights SCI’s resiliency, depicting the company’s minimal EPS sensitivity to stock market-driven trust fund portfolio returns.”
According to TipRanks.com, Schneeberger is a 5-star analyst with an average return of 10.6% and a 65.4% success rate. Schneeberger covers the Services sector, focusing on stocks such as General Finance, XPO Logistics, and United Parcel.
The word on The Street in general, suggests a Moderate Buy analyst consensus rating for Service Corp International with a $47 average price target.
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Based on Service Corp International’s latest earnings release for the quarter ending June 30, the company reported a quarterly net profit of $103 million. In comparison, last year the company had a net profit of $56.16 million.
Based on the recent corporate insider activity of 46 insiders, corporate insider sentiment is negative on the stock. Most recently, in August 2018, Steven Tidwell, the Sr.V.P. Sales & Marketing of SCI sold 32,150 shares for a total of $1,343,658.
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Service Corp. International engages in the provision of death care products and services. It operates through the Funeral and Cemetery business segments.
