Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund Makes New $921,000 Investment in Simpson Manufacturing Company, Inc. $SSD

Key Points

• Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund initiated a new position in Simpson Manufacturing, buying 5,366 shares valued at about $921,000 in the first quarter.
• Institutional ownership remains very high, with hedge funds and other investors actively adding to or starting positions in SSD; the article says institutions own 93.68% of the stock.
• Simpson Manufacturing reported stronger-than-expected quarterly results, including $2.13 EPS on revenue of $587.96 million, and also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.30 per share.

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund bought a new stake in Simpson Manufacturing Company, Inc. (NYSE:SSD - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm bought 5,366 shares of the construction company's stock, valued at approximately $921,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of SSD. Candriam S.C.A. acquired a new position in shares of Simpson Manufacturing during the first quarter valued at $7,133,000. Cooke & Bieler LP increased its position in Simpson Manufacturing by 77.9% in the fourth quarter. Cooke & Bieler LP now owns 129,685 shares of the construction company's stock worth $20,940,000 after purchasing an additional 56,769 shares during the period. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt acquired a new stake in Simpson Manufacturing in the first quarter worth about $4,424,000. Comerica Bank raised its holdings in Simpson Manufacturing by 21.6% during the 4th quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 123,375 shares of the construction company's stock worth $19,921,000 after purchasing an additional 21,889 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC raised its holdings in Simpson Manufacturing by 2,359.1% during the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 62,364 shares of the construction company's stock worth $10,070,000 after purchasing an additional 59,828 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.68% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on SSD. DA Davidson raised their target price on shares of Simpson Manufacturing from $200.00 to $212.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Simpson Manufacturing from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Stephens increased their price objective on shares of Simpson Manufacturing from $200.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 28th. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on shares of Simpson Manufacturing from $216.00 to $220.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Simpson Manufacturing from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Sunday, May 17th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $214.75.

Simpson Manufacturing Price Performance

Shares of SSD opened at $189.11 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 3.40, a quick ratio of 2.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17. Simpson Manufacturing Company, Inc. has a 1 year low of $156.32 and a 1 year high of $213.49. The stock has a market cap of $7.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.17 and a beta of 1.30. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $192.05 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $186.64.

Simpson Manufacturing (NYSE:SSD - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 27th. The construction company reported $2.13 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.84 by $0.29. Simpson Manufacturing had a return on equity of 17.72% and a net margin of 14.92%.The company had revenue of $587.96 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $550.08 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.85 EPS. Simpson Manufacturing's revenue was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Simpson Manufacturing Company, Inc. will post 9.13 earnings per share for the current year.

Simpson Manufacturing Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 23rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 2nd were paid a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, July 2nd. This is a boost from Simpson Manufacturing's previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. Simpson Manufacturing's payout ratio is currently 14.07%.

Simpson Manufacturing Profile

Simpson Manufacturing Co, Inc, through its Simpson Strong-Tie® brand, is a leading global supplier of structural building products. The company specializes in the design, testing, manufacture and supply of connectors, anchors, fasteners and lateral systems that enhance the safety and performance of wood, concrete and masonry structures. Its product portfolio also includes repair and strengthening systems, concrete reinforcement and high-performance adhesives used in residential, commercial and industrial construction projects.

Founded in 1956 by Barclay Simpson in Oakland, California, Simpson Manufacturing has grown from a single product business into a diversified manufacturer with worldwide operations.

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