Spectrum Brands Holdings Inc. $SPB Shares Bought by AQR Capital Management LLC

Key Points

• AQR Capital Management LLC has increased its stake in Spectrum Brands Holdings Inc. by 142.5%, purchasing an additional 372,630 shares to own a total of 634,137 shares, valued at approximately $44.6 million.
• Several institutional investors have also boosted their holdings, with Versant Capital Management Inc. increasing its stake by 101.7% during the first quarter.
• Spectrum Brands recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.47 per share, highlighting a dividend yield of 3.3% and a dividend payout ratio of 70.15%.

AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Spectrum Brands Holdings Inc. (NYSE:SPB - Free Report) by 142.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 634,137 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 372,630 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC owned about 2.41% of Spectrum Brands worth $44,592,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of SPB. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its position in Spectrum Brands by 82.2% during the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 5,938 shares of the company's stock worth $425,000 after buying an additional 2,679 shares during the period. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Spectrum Brands by 33.3% in the 1st quarter. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC now owns 200,000 shares of the company's stock valued at $14,310,000 after acquiring an additional 50,000 shares during the period. New York State Teachers Retirement System purchased a new stake in Spectrum Brands in the 1st quarter valued at $118,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in Spectrum Brands by 4,757.5% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 15,884 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,137,000 after purchasing an additional 15,557 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Aigen Investment Management LP acquired a new stake in Spectrum Brands during the 1st quarter worth $386,000.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on SPB shares. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Spectrum Brands from $65.00 to $60.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $75.00 price target on Spectrum Brands and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, August 11th. Canaccord Genuity Group decreased their price objective on Spectrum Brands from $77.00 to $75.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Spectrum Brands from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 9th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $74.80.

Spectrum Brands Price Performance

Shares of Spectrum Brands stock traded down $1.47 during trading on Friday, reaching $53.43. The company's stock had a trading volume of 267,940 shares, compared to its average volume of 376,625. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $56.09 and a 200-day moving average price of $60.44. Spectrum Brands Holdings Inc. has a 12-month low of $50.73 and a 12-month high of $96.62. The company has a market capitalization of $1.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.94 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a quick ratio of 1.50, a current ratio of 2.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35.

Spectrum Brands (NYSE:SPB - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported $1.24 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.25 by ($0.01). Spectrum Brands had a net margin of 2.56% and a return on equity of 5.27%. The business had revenue of $699.60 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $742.13 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.13 EPS. Spectrum Brands's revenue was down 10.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Spectrum Brands Holdings Inc. will post 5.06 EPS for the current year.

Spectrum Brands Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 23rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 26th will be given a dividend of $0.47 per share. This represents a $1.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.5%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 26th. Spectrum Brands's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 70.15%.

Spectrum Brands Profile

Spectrum Brands Holdings, Inc operates as a branded consumer products and home essentials company in North America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and Asia-Pacific regions. It operates through three segments: Home and Personal Care; Global Pet Care; and Home and Garden. The Home and Personal Care segment provides home appliances under the Black & Decker, Russell Hobbs, George Foreman, PowerXL, Emeril Legasse, Copper Chef, Toastmaster, Juiceman, Farberware, and Breadman brands; and personal care products under the Remington brand.