Exponent, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPO) Stock Position Raised by Axa S.A.

AXA S.A. raised its holdings in Exponent, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPO - Free Report) by 35.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 24,000 shares of the business services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 6,281 shares during the period. AXA S.A.'s holdings in Exponent were worth $2,138,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in EXPO. Venturi Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Exponent by 4.6% in the 4th quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,531 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $226,000 after acquiring an additional 111 shares during the period. Heritage Family Offices LLP increased its stake in Exponent by 3.8% during the fourth quarter. Heritage Family Offices LLP now owns 3,123 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $278,000 after acquiring an additional 114 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can lifted its holdings in shares of Exponent by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 8,747 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $779,000 after acquiring an additional 131 shares during the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System increased its stake in Exponent by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 14,723 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,312,000 after purchasing an additional 133 shares during the period. Finally, Private Trust Co. NA raised its stake in shares of Exponent by 129.8% in the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 278 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 157 shares in the last quarter. 92.37% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Exponent Stock Performance

EXPO stock traded down $0.65 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $78.49. 71,974 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 243,000. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $79.58 and its 200 day simple moving average is $88.17. Exponent, Inc. has a 1-year low of $73.37 and a 1-year high of $115.75. The company has a market cap of $3.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.02 and a beta of 0.95.

Exponent (NASDAQ:EXPO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The business services provider reported $0.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.48 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $137.44 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $134.63 million. Exponent had a net margin of 19.52% and a return on equity of 27.27%. Exponent's revenue for the quarter was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.59 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Exponent, Inc. will post 1.98 earnings per share for the current year.

Exponent Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 20th. Investors of record on Friday, June 6th will be paid a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.53%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 6th. Exponent's payout ratio is currently 58.54%.

Insider Activity

In other Exponent news, VP Richard Reiss sold 1,736 shares of Exponent stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.93, for a total value of $149,174.48. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 1,800 shares in the company, valued at $154,674. This trade represents a 49.10% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 2.10% of the company's stock.

About Exponent

Exponent, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a science and engineering consulting company in the United States and internationally. The company operates in two segments, Engineering and Other Scientific, and Environmental and Health. The Engineering and Other Scientific segment provides services in the areas of biomechanics, biomedical engineering and sciences, buildings and structures, civil engineering, construction consulting, data sciences, electrical engineering and computer science, human factors, materials and corrosion engineering, mechanical engineering, polymer science and materials chemistry, thermal sciences, and vehicle engineering.