Standard Motor Products (NYSE:SMP) Reaches New 52-Week Low – What’s Next?

Standard Motor Products, Inc. (NYSE:SMP)’s share price hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $25.66 and last traded at $25.71, with a volume of 207323 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $26.50.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, StockNews.com cut shares of Standard Motor Products from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, March 3rd.

Standard Motor Products Stock Performance

The stock’s 50 day moving average is $29.80 and its 200 day moving average is $31.35. The company has a current ratio of 2.25, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. The firm has a market cap of $562.16 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.87 and a beta of 0.50.

Standard Motor Products (NYSE:SMP) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 27th. The auto parts company reported $0.47 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.37 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $343.35 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $292.50 million. Standard Motor Products had a return on equity of 10.42% and a net margin of 2.56%. Analysts anticipate that Standard Motor Products, Inc. will post 3.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Standard Motor Products Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th were given a dividend of $0.29 per share. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.51%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. Standard Motor Products’s payout ratio is 100.81%.

Insider Transactions at Standard Motor Products

In other news, EVP Dale Burks sold 11,005 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.20, for a total transaction of $299,336.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 56,860 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,546,592. This trade represents a 16.22 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 5.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Standard Motor Products

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in Standard Motor Products by 7.0% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 104,913 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $3,483,000 after acquiring an additional 6,819 shares in the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans increased its position in shares of Standard Motor Products by 4.0% in the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 16,198 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $538,000 after purchasing an additional 624 shares during the period. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Standard Motor Products in the third quarter worth $382,000. Intech Investment Management LLC raised its stake in Standard Motor Products by 274.6% in the third quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 37,119 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $1,232,000 after purchasing an additional 27,210 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Foundry Partners LLC lifted its position in Standard Motor Products by 6.7% during the third quarter. Foundry Partners LLC now owns 165,205 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $5,485,000 after purchasing an additional 10,360 shares during the period. 81.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Standard Motor Products

Standard Motor Products, Inc manufactures and distributes replacement automotive parts in the United States and internationally. The company operates through three segments: Vehicle Control, Temperature Control, and Engineered Solutions segments. The company provides components for the ignition, emissions, and fuel delivery systems, such as air injection and induction components, air management valves, regulators and solenoids, exhaust gas recirculation components, fuel injectors and related components, fuel valves, ignition coils, connectors and sockets, modules, pumps, relays and fuses, starting and charging system parts, and vapor and purge components.