Royal Bank of Canada Cuts Stake in Spectrum Brands Holdings Inc. $SPB

Key Points

• Royal Bank of Canada has reduced its stake in Spectrum Brands Holdings Inc. by 24.1%, now owning approximately 0.72% of the company.
• Several institutional investors, such as Callodine Capital Management and Man Group, have increased their stakes significantly, indicating strong interest in Spectrum Brands.
• Spectrum Brands reported earnings of $1.24 per share for the last quarter, missing estimates, and plans to pay a dividend of $0.47 per share on September 23rd.

Royal Bank of Canada decreased its position in Spectrum Brands Holdings Inc. (NYSE:SPB - Free Report) by 24.1% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 190,106 shares of the company's stock after selling 60,272 shares during the quarter. Royal Bank of Canada owned 0.72% of Spectrum Brands worth $13,601,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of SPB. Callodine Capital Management LP raised its position in shares of Spectrum Brands by 38.4% during the 1st quarter. Callodine Capital Management LP now owns 730,000 shares of the company's stock valued at $52,232,000 after buying an additional 202,500 shares in the last quarter. Man Group plc increased its stake in Spectrum Brands by 160.5% during the fourth quarter. Man Group plc now owns 320,178 shares of the company's stock worth $27,052,000 after acquiring an additional 197,263 shares during the last quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP raised its position in Spectrum Brands by 403.9% during the fourth quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 233,800 shares of the company's stock valued at $19,754,000 after purchasing an additional 187,400 shares during the period. Alberta Investment Management Corp raised its position in Spectrum Brands by 33.1% during the first quarter. Alberta Investment Management Corp now owns 750,029 shares of the company's stock valued at $53,665,000 after purchasing an additional 186,729 shares during the period. Finally, Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in shares of Spectrum Brands in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $11,579,000.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

Spectrum Brands Trading Up 1.7%

Shares of NYSE:SPB traded up $0.90 on Tuesday, hitting $52.99. 413,861 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 366,887. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.77 and a beta of 0.83. Spectrum Brands Holdings Inc. has a 12 month low of $50.73 and a 12 month high of $96.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 2.42 and a quick ratio of 1.50. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $55.96 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $59.96.

Spectrum Brands (NYSE:SPB - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly 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 return on equity of 5.27% and a net margin of 2.56%.The company had revenue of $699.60 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $742.13 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.13 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 10.2% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Spectrum Brands Holdings Inc. will post 5.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Spectrum Brands Dividend Announcement

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 paid a dividend of $0.47 per share. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 26th. Spectrum Brands's payout ratio is currently 70.15%.

About Spectrum Brands

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.