Exponent, Inc. $EXPO Shares Purchased by AQR Capital Management LLC

Key Points

• AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Exponent, Inc. by 45.8%, owning approximately $6.74 million by acquiring an additional 26,120 shares in the first quarter.
• Exponent reported $0.52 earnings per share for the last quarter, surpassing estimates and achieving a revenue of $132.87 million, marking a 7.3% year-over-year increase.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.30 per share, representing an annualized yield of 1.7%, with a payout ratio of 60%.

AQR Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Exponent, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPO - Free Report) by 45.8% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 83,192 shares of the business services provider's stock after buying an additional 26,120 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC owned 0.16% of Exponent worth $6,744,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. State of Alaska Department of Revenue grew its stake in Exponent by 2.7% during the 1st quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 5,946 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $481,000 after purchasing an additional 155 shares during the last quarter. Mitchell & Pahl Private Wealth LLC increased its holdings in Exponent by 2.5% in the 1st quarter. Mitchell & Pahl Private Wealth LLC now owns 6,709 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $544,000 after buying an additional 164 shares during the period. Portside Wealth Group LLC raised its position in Exponent by 6.0% during the 1st quarter. Portside Wealth Group LLC now owns 2,993 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $243,000 after buying an additional 170 shares during the last quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System lifted its stake in Exponent by 1.7% during the 1st quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 12,200 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $989,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the period. Finally, Hardy Reed LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Exponent by 5.5% in the 1st quarter. Hardy Reed LLC now owns 3,850 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $312,000 after acquiring an additional 202 shares during the last quarter. 92.37% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Exponent Stock Performance

Shares of Exponent stock traded down $0.58 during trading on Monday, hitting $69.47. 714,164 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 333,612. Exponent, Inc. has a 52-week low of $63.81 and a 52-week high of $115.75. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.74 and a beta of 0.94. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $71.62 and a 200-day simple moving average of $76.15.

Exponent (NASDAQ:EXPO - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The business services provider reported $0.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.48 by $0.04. Exponent had a return on equity of 24.19% and a net margin of 18.35%.The business had revenue of $132.87 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $130.82 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.57 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Exponent, Inc. will post 1.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Exponent Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 19th. Investors of record on Friday, September 5th will be given a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 5th. Exponent's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 60.00%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Exponent news, CEO Catherine Corrigan sold 4,896 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.09, for a total value of $348,056.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 81,342 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,782,602.78. This represents a 5.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Joseph Sala sold 1,595 shares of Exponent stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.64, for a total value of $112,670.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Exponent Company Profile

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.